Escaping Death
by Jezzie Lynn
Summary: Kagome is your average, ordinary girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape. Not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do? Complete!
1. Chapter 1

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! I am attempting to write this. I'm hoping that it will be good since it is one of my first horror and suspense stories. I have no idea how I came up with it, but please read and review. I hope you enjoy.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl with average friends. But after a strange online conversation, horrible attacks start happening all around the city she once known to be safe. Someone wants something from her and they are scaring her and torturing her. But who is it and what do they want? Can she really escape death?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter One

* * *

Sighing, Kagome walked through the door of her home. Her head was aching and she still had to study for a test. But she knew that she could do that later. And besides, it wasn't as if she did not know the material anyway. She had other things to do, which involved the Internet and her friends.

She sat in her comfortable desk chair and turned the computer on, waiting impatiently for it to fully warm up. Then she signed on under her name and received instant messages almost instantly.

Kagome began talking to Sango right away. Sango was her best friend who had a crush on Miroku, the school pervert. She had for some time now.

**Miko17:** Hey Sango, what's up?

**Slayer258:** Nothing much. What about with you?

**Miko17:** Same. I have to study for a stupid test.

**Slayer258:** Haha. I feel sorry for you. I don't have anything this week.

**Miko17:** Lucky.

Kagome hit the minimize button on the instant message and the little box went down to the bottom of the screen. She glanced at her list of buddies and seen that Miroku and Inuyasha were on as well. She decided to talk to them, too. She double clicked on Miroku's screen name and an instant message box appeared suddenly. She typed her message and hit the 'enter' button and her message was sent.

**Miko17:** Hey, Miroku. What's up?

**PervMonk167:** Oh, hello, Kagome. Nothing really. What about things with you?

**Miko17:** Same. I'm talking to Sango, too.

**PervMonk167:** Hmm, interesting. Did she say anything about me?

**Miko17:** No, why would she? Oh wait, she sent me an IM.

**PervMonk167:** Ok.

Kagome minimized her instant message with Miroku and lifted Sango's back up to full size.

**Slayer258:** That pervert Miroku! I forgot to tell you that he touched my butt again. And asked me to have his children.

Kagome laughed after she read it then typed a message and sent it.

**Miko17:** What did you say?

**Slayer258:** I said no of course! After I hit him upside the head.

**Miko17:** You know you like it when he does all of that stuff, so why do you hit him like you always do?

**Slayer258:** I can't let on. Besides, I like playing hard to get.

**Miko17:** Ok.

Kagome lowered Sango's and lifted Miroku's back up.

**Miko17:** She just told me what happened.

**PervMonk167:** Oh, really?

**Miko17:** Yes, she did. Why don't you just ask her out?

**PervMonk167:** I can't.

**Miko17:** Why not?

**PervMonk167:** I…I'm too afraid, Kagome. She'll probably reject me and hit me in the head. You know her.

**Miko17:** She won't do that!

**PervMonk167:** What makes you say that?

**Miko17:** I know her. She's my best friend. If she doesn't want to go out, all she'll say is that she's sorry and that she doesn't want a boyfriend.

**PervMonk167:** That's what I'm afraid of! I really like her.

**Miko17:** I know. Maybe you should give it a little more time.

Kagome rolled her eyes at her statement, knowing that Sango probably wouldn't reject him at all. But she wanted Miroku to wait a while, since he was so nervous. He needed more time to get to know her a lot better.

**PervMonk167:** Yes, I guess you're right. I'll wait.

**Miko17:** Ok. That's good.

She lowered Miroku's IM and lifted her buddy list up before double clicking Inuyasha's screen name. She typed her message quickly and sent it, nervous about what he would say. He was very friendly most of the time.

**Miko17:** Hey. What's going on?

**Numbah1Dog:** Nothing.

Kagome sighed. He was a boy of very few words, it seemed. His older brother was pretty cruel and cold hearted against humans, by what the rumors said. And Inuyasha's parents died when he was young and everyone rejected him because he was half and half. No really a demon and not really a human. But Kagome liked him just the way he was and was never mean to him unless it was necessary.

**Miko17:** Is that all you have to say?

**Numbah1Dog:** What else am I supposed to say?

**Miko17:** Nothing! Jeez.

**Numbah1Dog:** What's with you?

**Miko17:** Nothing. How was your day?

**Numbah1Dog:** Crappy, like always.

**Miko17:** Why?

**Numbah1Dog:** Why are you interrogating me?

**Miko17:** I'm not!

**Numbah1Dog:** Then stop asking me all these questions!

**Miko17:** Why? I'm just curious.

**Numbah1Dog:** You're annoying!

**Miko17:** …

**Numbah1Dog:** What? Got nothing else to say?

**Miko17:** Not now. I'm annoying, remember?

**Numbah1Dog:** Would you just quit being angry? I didn't mean it and you know it.

**Miko17:** How am I supposed to know? This is the Internet, not a face to face conversation!

**Numbah1Dog:** Jeez, don't bite my head off!

**Miko17:** I didn't.

**Numbah1Dog:** Heh, yeah right.

Kagome lowered his IM and lifted up Sango's.

**Miko17:** I'm talking to Inuyasha and Miroku.

**Slayer258:** Awesome. I wonder when Inuyasha is gonna ask you out.

**Miko17:** Never.

**Slayer258:** You don't know that.

Kagome felt her face heat up, which was a sure sign that she was blushing. She decided to get the spotlight off of her and typed a message.

**Miko17:** I wonder when Miroku will ask you out.

**Slayer258:** Never. He won't, not at all.

**Miko17:** You don't know that. I mean, he totally likes you. I can tell.

**Slayer258:** Yeah right. What about you and Koga?

Kagome sighed and realized that Sango was also trying to keep the spotlight off of herself. But Koga was one person she really hated talking about.

**Miko17:** What _about _Koga and me?

**Slayer258:** He really likes you.

**Miko17:** I don't like him.

**Slayer258:** Not even as a friend?

**Miko17:** As a friend? Yes. Anything more? No.

**Slayer258:** Oh, haha.

Kagome lowered Sango's and lifted up Inuyasha's.

**Miko17:** What do you want to talk about?

**Numbah1Dog:** I dunno.

**Miko17:** Well, neither do I.

**Numbah1Dog:** That's your problem, not mine. I don't care what we talk about.

Kagome sat for a moment, thinking silently to herself. Finally, she chose a topic and typed a message.

**Miko17:** Do you like anyone?

Inuyasha did not reply for some time. Finally, however, he replied.

**Numbah1Dog:** Why do you ask?

**Miko17:** I'm just trying to make a conversation.

**Numbah1Dog:** Whatever.

**Miko17:** Do you or not?

**Numbah1Dog:** No.

Kagome looked away from the screen, disappointed. She was hoping that he liked her. But it looked as if he didn't.

The sound of a new instant message broke her from her sullen thoughts and made her turn around to face the screen once again. Inuyasha's message had minimized and a new IM box sat there, waiting for a reply. She had never seen or heard of the screen name before, but they sure seemed to know her.

**Death986:** Hello, Kagome.

**Miko17:** Um, hi. Who is this?

**Death986:** I know you.

**Miko17:** Koga? Is that you?

**Death986:** Nope, not Koga.

**Miko17:** Hojo, then?

**Death986:** Nope, not him either.

**Miko17:** Hmm, Rin? Did you get a new screen name?

**Death986:** Guess again.

**Miko17:** Shiori? Or Kikyo? Maybe Kagura?

**Death986:** No, no, no. Not any of them.

**Miko17:** Then, I don't know. Have I ever seen you before?

**Death986:** Plenty of times.

Kagome had seen a lot of people. She had bumped into people in the hallways and had helped some peoplewith math problems. She had no idea who it was.

**Miko17:** Who are you?

**Death986:** I've been watching you. I know a lot about you, Kagome. You know who I am, but you don't really know me. I want you, Kagome. I want you now!

* * *

Note- How was it? I hope you all liked it. Sorry for any misspellings, I didn't feel like fixing them. It's kind of late and I want to sleep. Hmm, sleep. Sounds nice. Please review! I could use ideas. 


	2. Chapter 2

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! I am attempting to write this. I'm hoping that it will be good since it is one of my first horror and suspense stories. I have no idea how I came up with it, but please read and review. I hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer- I DO NOT own Inuyasha. Duh! I wish I did, though.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl with average friends. But after a strange online conversation, horrible attacks start happening all around the city she once known to be safe. Someone wants something from her and they are scaring her and torturing her. But who is it and what do they want? Can she really escape death?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Two

* * *

Kagome stared at the screen, at the instant message. 'This dude is a stalker!' She thought in fear, clicking the button with an 'X' on it to get rid of the IM box. She lifted up Sango's and typed a message. 

**Miko17:** That was weird.

**Slayer258:** What was weird?

**Miko17:** Some dude just instant messaged me. He said that he knew me and that he wanted me.

**Slayer258:** That is weird. Did you ask him who he was?

**Miko17:** Yeah, but he wouldn't tell me. He told me that I seen him before, plenty of times. He told me that I knew him. I even went down a list of the people I thought he was, but he said that he wasn't them every time.

**Slayer258:** That's sick. I wonder who it is.

**Miko17:** Me, too. I'll avoid whoever it is for the rest of my life if I ever figure out who it is.

**Slayer258:** I don't blame you.

Kagome lowered Sango's instant message box and sighed before glancing at her clock that sat on her dresser. It was almost eight o'clock. Her mom should've been home from work by then, but maybe she was running a little late. And Souta was on a field trip and wouldn't be back until the weekend. Her grandpa had gone along with Souta's class.

The sound of an instant message popping up made her look back at the screen, somewhat reluctantly.

**Death986:** I said that I wanted you.

**Miko17:** I know what you said. I don't care, though.

**Death986:** You should care.

**Miko17:** Why? You're just threatening me over the Internet! I could block you.

**Death986:** But you can't stop me from getting inside your house. By the way, I am standing on your front porch with my laptop.

**Miko17: **You're lying!

**Death986:** Now why would I be lying? I'm coming for you, Kagome.You better watch out.

**Miko17:** You're just trying to scare me! I'm not buying it.

**Death986:** I would, if I were you. I'm touching the doorknob. Oh, what's this?

**Miko17:** What?

**Death986:** You left the door unlocked.

Kagome gulped and lowered the IM box before lifting Sango's up. She typed frantically on her keyboard. She typed so hard and fast it was a wonder that she did not break her keys.

**Miko17:** You've got to help me! Please, come over to my house, right now!

**Slayer258: **Why? What's wrong?

**Miko17:** Just hurry! Please, he's coming through my front door!

**Slayer258:** Ok, hold on, Kagome.

Kagome stood up and turned toward her bedroom door. 'I don't have much time! He could walk right through that doorway any minute.'

She timidly walked up to her door, silently praying that no one would jump out and get her, and shut the door before locking it. She stared at it for a moment, scared out of her mind.

Without warning, lightning struck, causing loud, sharp thunder to follow after it. She jumped and covered her mouth to keep herself from screaming. Her heart was up in her throat, pounding hard.

Suddenly, she realized that she was putting Sango in danger by making her come to her house. There was a thunderstorm outside, not to mention a psychotic stalker.

She raced over to her computer and minimized Sango's IM box and lifted up Inuyasha's.

**Miko17:** Come over to my house.

**Numbah1Dog:** What? Are you crazy? There's a thunderstorm outside and it's getting late!

**Miko17:** What do you care? Someone is trying to break into my house! Just help me out, all right? Please!

**Numbah1Dog:** Fine. I'll be there in a minute.

Kagome sighed with relief, knowing that Inuyasha was coming. He could fight and was really strong. She knew that he could anyone's butt…almost, anyway.

She stood up and paced nervously around her room for about ten minutes, and then she stopped and glanced out the window at the rain and lightning. It was really dark outside, except for when lightning flashed, illuminating all there was to see.

The pounding on her door made her jump and look at it fearfully. Any intruder would have just tried to barge in and would not have knocked. She took a few reluctant steps forward, her heart trying to beat its way out of her chest. She extended a shaking hand toward the knob and unlocked it before turning and opening the door.

Sango and Inuyasha stood there, wet, and confused.

Kagome relaxed when she seen that it was just her friends.

"I thought," Inuyasha said, sounding annoyed as he went into her room, "someone was breaking into your house. No one was there when we got here."

"It's true." Sango said. "We got here at the same time and no one was around. We looked everywhere outside and inside. No one was there."

Inuyasha snorted. "She was probably lying about the whole thing. She was probably just scared of the storm and wanted us to come over here with her to keep her company."

"That's not true!" Kagome shouted. "Look at the instant messages he sent me!" She went to her computer and lifted the IM box up and showed them their conversation.

Sango just stared at it in dumbfounded horror while Inuyasha went up to get a better look. "It's just someone playing a trick on you. Don't worry about it." He said carelessly.

Kagome stared at the instant message for a moment. Inuyasha turned and was about to leave, but Kagome demanded, "Was my front door unlocked?"

Inuyasha stopped and turned to face her. She was looking at him. "Yeah, it was. Why?"

"He said my door was unlocked. How could he have known?" Kagome wanted to know.

"Lucky guess." Inuyasha answered after a moment. "Kagome, there wasn't anyone there. We would have found something…some kind of trace or something, I'm sure."

Kagome looked down in defeat. "I guess you're right."

"I'll see you guys tomorrow." Inuyasha said and with that, he turned and left through her door. Kagome heard him close the door behind him.

"Kagome…" Sango said unbelievingly. "If you need anything…call me."

"I will."

"See you tomorrow. Bye." Sango also left, closing the front door behind her gently.

Kagome went downstairs and made sure that every door and every window was shut securely and locked. She checked every bedroom window. She locked her own windows and her balcony door.

She went up to her room and closed the door behind her and turned her lights off before climbing into bed. She often left her computer on the Internet, even at night.

'Something weird is going on. And if the others don't believe me, they'll find out eventually. I have a bad feeling that something is about to happen.'

She finally fell asleep and when she got up for school the next morning, she saw that she had some instant messages. She looked them over and gasped.

**Death986:** Your friends didn't see me last night, did they? That's good, because I was watching you guys through your bedroom window. Now I know where your room is, Kagome. Thanks.

* * *

Note- How was it? Sorry, guys, I forgot my disclaimer in the last chapter. Anyway, please review and you can send in ideas. Thanks for reading! 


	3. Chapter 3

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! I am attempting to write this. I'm hoping that it will be good since it is one of my first horror and suspense stories. I have no idea how I came up with it, but please read and review. I hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha. Duh! I wish I did, though.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl with average friends. But after a strange online conversation, horrible attacks start happening all around the city she once known to be safe. Someone wants something from her and they are scaring her and torturing her. But who is it and what do they want? Can she really escape death?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Three

Kagome ran down the street, fearing the thought of stopping for anyone other than her close friends. After reading that instant message from that stalker, Kagome was definitely afraid now. The only problem was that Inuyasha did not believe her when she had shown him the instant message. He had said it was just a stupid prank.

Sango knew about it, but Kagome was not certain that Sango believed her. In fact, she was not sure of Sango's feelings at all. And Miroku did not even know about it, unless Sango told him, and she probably had.

She continued to run until she made it inside of school and was panting beside of her locker. As she regained her breath, she craned her neck as she worked the number to her lock before it clicked open and she grabbed her books.

Without warning, someone grabbed her shoulder, causing her to squeal and spin around, slamming her back against her locker behind her.

Sango tossed up both hands to show that she was harmless. "Whoa! What's the matter, Kagome? Why are you so nervous? Is it because of last night?"

Kagome sighed in relief, holding a hand over her chest. "No, it's not from last night. He left me a message this morning."

"What'd it say?" Sango wanted to know as they went to their homeroom and stayed at the back, away from everyone else.

Kagome handed Sango a piece of paper with the message that the stalker had written on it. Sango read it and gasped before looking at Kagome. "I've got to show this to Inuyasha."

"Keep it." Kagome said instantly. "I hate looking at it."

Sango folded up the paper and stuck it into her pocket and turned to look at her best friend. "Are you all right, Kagome?"

"Yeah, just a little shocked." Kagome answered truthfully.

"Well," Sango replied with a small chuckle, "I would be, too."

Kagome looked up at Sango and they both started laughing; something that always happened when they tried to stare at one another. "It's no big deal," Kagome managed to say between laughs. "I'm sure that Inuyasha was right…that it was just some stupid kid playing a prank."

"Maybe…" Sango said, suddenly serious and not laughing anymore. "But see if he says anything else tonight, ok? Like…a hint to who he is and why he's messing with you."

"Sure thing." Kagome said. Impetuously, the bell rang and the two girls jumped before laughing at their own skittishness. "See you later."

"Yeah. Bye." They took different paths.

Kagome was headed for her next class when Koga suddenly got in her way. "Hey, Kagome."

"Oh, hi, Koga." She replied. "What's up?"

"Well, I heard that there is a dance sometime and I was just wondering if you would like to go with me." Koga answered.

Kagome sighed. "Koga, look, I'm sorry but I might not even go."

"Well, how about a date, then?" He was being extremely persistent.

"I've been really busy lately." Kagome said uneasily. She hated having to turn him down -- again -- but she really didn't feel anything for him. "I don't know if I can."

She looked up at him and seen something glint in his blue eyes. Was it anger or sadness? She could not tell, but was a little surprised when he just simply turned and walked away without another word. She stared after him for a moment before realizing that she had to get to class. She hurried down the hallway, dodging other people.

---

Kagome sighed as she went through the door to her home and flung her book bag down in the chair in the living room. She instantly went into the kitchen and took out a small container from the freezer and pulled a spoon from a drawer and went back to the living room, cutting the television on -- something she usually did after school.

She collapsed onto the couch and pried the lid off of the ice cream container before eating the chocolate ice cream. She began flipping through channels until something caught her eye and she stopped and began listening to the report that was being broadcasted.

"Katsumi Neotaki of Tokyo was a young school teacher who had graduated only a few months ago. Her body was found earlier this morning in an alley behind a dumpster. She had apparently been beaten to death. There were no signs of any sexual assault. Her killer is still at large."

Kagome gulped down her spoonful of ice cream. Her killer was still at large in Tokyo? That wasn't good. There was a murderer in her city and she was home alone.

Risking a glance at the door, Kagome gently sat her ice cream down and jumped up and locked the door. She then closed the shades and cut the television off.

She put the ice cream away in the freezer and headed up to her room and closed the door behind her before sitting at her computer. She had left it on all day and hadn't received any new messages, but saw that Sango was on. She double clicked on her screen name and typed her message in the box that appeared.

**Miko17: **Hey.

**Slayer258:** Hi. What's up?

**Miko17:** Not much. Did you hear about that girl that was found dead in an alley today?

**Slayer258:** Yeah. That's horrible. And her killer is still at large in our city.

**Miko17:** That's the scary part. He could strike again.

**Slayer258:** Well, he probably will, seeing as how this is a killer and he just got away with one murder. He'll probably think that he can get away with another.

**Miko17:** Yeah, I know.

Kagome yawned and minimized Sango's IM box and gazed out the window, her chin in her palm. But the sound of an arriving IM startled her and she turned and peered at it. She gasped when she seen who it was.

**Death986:** Well, hello, Kagome.

**Miko17:** Who are you?

**Death986:** Now, now. I can't let you know who I am. But I'm sure you find out in time.

**Miko17:** I got your instant message this morning.

Kagome was trembling as she typed that, but she sent it anyway. She just had to get this guy to talk more.

**Death986:** Ah. I'm glad you did.

**Miko17:** You can't see me. I know you can't. You were bluffing.

**Death986:** Are you sure about that?

**Miko17:** Yes.

**Death986:** I'm looking at you right now, Kagome. You and your friends showed me where your room is last night when they came over when you asked them to. You were afraid, just like you are now. I can tell by your expression.

**Miko17:** If you can see me now, then what am I wearing?

She just had to see if he was telling the truth or not. So far, it sounded as if he was. How else could he have known that she had asked Inuyasha and Sango to come over to her house the previous night in order to help her?

**Death986:** You are wearing a light green shirt with a dark blue skirt. Am I correct?

Kagome's breath hitched in her throat. That's exactly what she was wearing. She he _had _been telling the truth all along. She typed, a little reluctantly, a response.

**Miko17:** Yes, that's what I'm wearing.

**Death986:** Don't be so afraid. I will do you no harm. Let's play a little game, shall we?

**Miko17:** What kind of game?

**Death986:** It's simple, really. I'll ask you a few questions and you answer them. Now you better tell the truth.

Kagome decided that maybe this was a good opportunity to try and figure out who he was. She hesitantly typed her message.

**Miko17: **Fine. Ask your questions.

**Death986:** As you wish. If you could kill someone, who would it be?

Kagome's eyes widened. This dude was totally nuts. But she had to go along with it if she wanted to try to find out anything more about him. She thought for a minute before typing an answer.

**Miko17:** Kikyo Kemataki, I guess.

**Death986:** I see.

Without warning, he signed off, leaving Kagome staring at the IM box.

"I can't believe he signed off like that." Kagome muttered to herself. "I still had to find out more about him. But maybe he was on to my plan or something."

Sighing, she put an away message up and got up from her computer and did her homework. She then decided to take a shower and was about to undress in her room when she stopped.

"He said he could see me and that he knows where my room is." She whispered to herself.

She then went to the bathroom and took off her clothes and took a shower. When she climbed out and put her clothes on and walked into the hallway, she heard a noise and paused. She heard it again and held her breath. Someone was in the house with her.

She timidly walked down the darkened hallway toward the stairs and saw a figure walking around slowly, as if trying to find it's way around the house. "Who's there?" She called shakily.

"Kagome? Is that you?" The figure asked. It was her mother. She found the light switch and flicked it on. "Oh, hey dear."

Kagome sighed in relief. "Hi, mom."

"You look like you saw a ghost," her mother commented. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah, you just scared me." Kagome laughed nervously. "I'm going to bed. Night."

"Good night, sweetheart."

Kagome went into her room and closed all of the blinds and locked her windows and crawled into bed. She was losing her mind because of this guy. He was just too freaky.

"Everything will be better tomorrow." She promised herself before drifting off to sleep.

What she didn't know was that somewhere in the streets and alleyways of Tokyo, another life was being taken from an innocent person.

* * *

Note- There! Sorry it was so short. I've been busy lately. I go back to school next Thursday and I've been attending a camp there that is really hard. I'm sunburned! Anyway, please review. I appreciate it. 


	4. Chapter 4

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! I am attempting to write this. I'm hoping that it will be good since it is one of my first horror and suspense stories. I have no idea how I came up with it, but please read and review. I hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha. Duh! I wish I did, though.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl with average friends. But after a strange online conversation, horrible attacks start happening all around the city she once known to be safe. Someone wants something from her and they are scaring her and torturing her. But who is it and what do they want? Can she really escape death?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Four

* * *

Miroku sat on the bleachers in the gym, which were covered with flocks of people, all of which were quiet. Inuyasha and Kagome sat beside of him. Both Miroku and Inuyasha were suffering, but neither of them would let it show. Outside, they appeared to be sullen and composed. Inside, however, they were continuously screaming and demanding, "Why?"

Kagome kept pondering about all of the current events. She wasn't even listening to the principal, who continued talking on and on about the student whose body was found in an alley the day before.

"--Kikyo Kemataki was a wonderful student, who was loved by all of her peers and loved them back--"

Wasn't that the truth? Well, not the _exact _truth, anyway, but it was close. A lot of people -- if not everyone -- loved her. And she loved almost everyone of them back. Even Inuyasha.

They had been dating for months and had recently split up, not two weeks ago. Things had gotten complicated with Inuyasha and his family and he had become more aggressive. So in order to try and keep his anger from getting out of control, or either of them getting hurt, Kikyo left. She thought that maybe it would help his attitude. Boy, had she been wrong. It only seemed as if his attitude toward life had only gradually gotten worse.

"--It is so unfortunate that this young woman's life was taken when she had such a long and wonderful life to live out to her fullest. Everyone here who knew her -- and even some who do not -- can't help but wonder why she was taken at such a young age and why. And who took the role of God into their own hands? This question may never be answered--"

Kagome flinched. She had a pretty good idea. Well, not really, due to the fact that the person she told about wanting Kikyo dead was keeping their identity a secret. She couldn't help but shudder when she remembered that this person also knew where she lived and where her room was. She was a possible victim -- but only if this person was really the psychotic murderer that she thought him to be.

The principal went on talking before there was a pause for a few moments of silence. After that, she dismissed them from school early. Miroku and Inuyasha, however, hung around the gym, gazing at her picture that was posted up in disbelief.

"She's gone," Miroku murmured, staring at the picture of his now deceased cousin.

"Yeah, I know." Inuyasha replied.

Kagome remained behind them, feeling a wave of dejection flood over her. She felt out of place. She also felt partially responsible since she had told someone that she had wanted Kikyo dead in the first place. Someone suddenly touched her on the shoulder and she squeaked and spun around, causing Miroku and Inuyasha to do the same.

"Hey," Sango said. "Sorry I missed the assembly. I woke up late." She hugged Miroku tenderly and whispered, "I'm so sorry bout Kikyo."

Kagome sighed and looked at Inuyasha while Sango continued talking to Miroku. He glared back at her scornfully. "What?"

Kagome shook her head. "Nothing."

"Have you got a staring problem, or something?"

"No. I just want to know if you're okay."

"I'm fine," he growled.

Kagome shrugged and turned toward Kikyo's picture. "Whatever you say."

Inuyasha just snorted irritably and looked away.

Kagome heard words echoing in her mind, over and over, as if her mind were a bottomless pit and she had screamed the words down into it. "'You left the door unlocked.' 'Your friends didn't see me last night, did they? That's good, because I was watching you guys through your bedroom window. Now I know where your room is, Kagome. Thanks.' 'Don't be so afraid. I will do you no harm. Let's play a little game, shall we?' 'If you could kill someone, who would it be?'"

Kagome felt her stomach churn when she remembered her answer. "'Kikyo Kemataki, I guess.'"

"Kagome?" Sango asked, snapping her out of her reverie.

"Yeah?"

"You okay?" She examined her friend. "You look a little pale."

"I'm fine. I don't really feel too good. I'm going to go home." Kagome lied. She lifted her bag onto her shoulder from where it had been resting on the bleachers and smiled lightly at her friends. Sango told her to be careful and that if she needed anything, that she knew who to call. Inuyasha only said an unhappy, "See you," and Miroku gave her a warm, heartfelt hug. Kagome didn't think this was odd due to the fact that Miroku had lost a cousin and was distressed and was currently dating Sango.

Nonetheless, she made her way home, stopping at a store only to purchase a drink. But she swore that she could have felt eyes staring into her back. When she looked, however, she found no one. Shrugging it off, she paid for her drink and left.

When she arrived home, she sat on the couch and flipped on the news. Just in time to be reminded of Kikyo.

"--Kikyo Kemataki's battered body was found in an alley yesterday morning. She had, apparently, been going through the alley when she was attacked and beaten with a blunt object. There were no signs of the murderer, nor were there any witnesses. This is only the second murder this week. Katsumi Neotaki, a young teacher, was also found murdered in an alley only a few days ago. Could they be linked through the same killer? We'll have more on these stories as they progress and when more information is available--"

Kagome cut the television off and headed upstairs to her computer. No one was on, however, and she just sat, staring out the window in silence. The sound of an instant message caught her attention, however, and her head snapped back to the screen.

**Death986: **What's with the sullen look, Kagome?

**Miko17: **Leave me alone.

**Death986: **Now, now. Why are you being this way?

**Miko17: **You killed her, that's why!

**Death986: **I was just trying to make you happy. After all, it was _you _that said you wanted her dead.

**Miko17: **I didn't think you'd do it!

**Death986: **Well, then. You must not know me very well.

**Miko17: **I don't _want _to get to know you!

**Death986: **Sure you do. You're curious as to my identity. But I can't tell you because you can then tell the police who has been committing all these murders.

Kagome couldn't help but gasp. He'd put up 'murders,' as in multiple.

**Miko17: **So, you killed the school teacher, too?

**Death986: **Yes, but I only did that one for fun. I killed Kikyo because you wanted her out of the picture.

**Miko17: **You're sick.

**Death986: **No, I just like to have fun. Now tell me, did you want her out of the picture in order to have Inuyasha all to yourself or just because you disliked her?

Kagome stared at the screen. That was all she _could _do. She was immobilized with shock and fear. This guy was crazy!

**Death986: **Why are you so shocked? Is it because I guessed the reason?

With shaking fingers, Kagome typed a response:

**Miko17: **No, of course not!

**Death986: **Admit it, you love Inuyasha. That's why you wanted Kikyo gone so he wouldn't run back to her.

**Miko17: **Not true! I don't like Inuyasha! Sure, Kikyo was a little mean, but she wasn't mean enough for me to get somebody to off her!

**Death986: **Right. Then why, I wonder, did you tell me that you wanted her dead?

**Miko17:** She was the first one who came to mind! I thought it was just a _game! _If I had known it was real, I wouldn't have answered.

**Death986:** Would you?

**Miko17:** Yes. Now leave me alone and stop killing people.

**Death986:** I can't do that.

Kagome felt her heart drop down to her stomach.

**Miko17:** What do you mean?

**Death986:** We haven't finished out game.

**Miko17:** We've played enough!

**Death986:** Oh, no. That was only the beginning. Who is next on your list to die?

**Miko17:** Nobody!

Kagome signed off. She had to. Everything in the room had begun to spin sickeningly around her as if she had just stepped off 'The Scrambler' at the amusement park or something. She wandered away from her computer and down to the kitchen. She flipped on the television and tried to occupy herself by watching Selene in _Underworld: Evolution _kick major vampire and werewolf butt.

This seemed to work for a short time. She had caught her breath and her heart was beating at its normal rate in its normal place: her chest.

All of her tranquility was shattered the moment the phone rang and she answered with a timid, "Hello?"

What answered her, however, nearly caused her to lurch forward and die of a heart attack. "It's not nice to sign off on people like that!" The voice was crackling and deep; irregular.

Kagome gasped.

"What's the matter, Kagome?" The low voice inquired. The way he growled her name cause her to tremble.

"W-Who is this?" She demanded, even though her voice was fragile and shaking. She could not tell who it was by their voice for it wasn't their regular voice. They must have been using something to disguise it.

"Can't tell ya." They replied in a mocking tone. "You scared?"

Kagome took in a slow, deep breath and closed her eyes momentarily. When she opened them, she said, "Of course I am. I'm on the phone with a psychotic killer. Wouldn't you be?"

Okay, stupid question. He was a killer, why would he be afraid of someone who passed the time doing the same things he did?

"Maybe," came his response. "Now, let's continue our game, shall we?"

"No," she said, as firmly as she could, which wasn't much due to her fear. "Let's not and say we did."

This, obviously, was not the right answer for he suddenly bellowed, outraged, "Bitch, if you don't tell me who you want to die, then I'll have to kill Inuyasha and Sango and Miroku!"

Kagome flinched and felt her knees buckle. Next thing she knew, she had collapsed against the wall and had slid down it onto the floor with a sob. She felt the hot tears come before she could stop them. She felt her entire body wrack with sobs. She just couldn't help it. "F-Fine…"

"Stop whining!" He commanded.

Kagome did the best she could to keep her whimpers muffled as she tried to come up with someone to kill. It was horrible of her, but she didn't want to have the deaths of her friends on her conscious -- even if this was close to the same thing.

"Well?" The voice demanded irritably. "Who's it gonna be?"

"K-Kagura Iwamura." Kagome choked out with difficulty.

"Now, now," he said in what Kagome figured was his comforting tone. "Everything will be ok."

Kagome let her sobs escape all at once. This guy was depending on _her _to pick out the victims before he killed them! How psycho could he get?

"I have to go now, Kagome." Hearing his voice made her sick. "But we'll continue our game tomorrow."

Kagome felt a glimmer of hope through an obscured tunnel. She could call the cops and tell them about a guy threatening her and killing people! She could tell her mother and Sango and the others! Everything would be all right in the end and perhaps she could save one life and take a murderer to jail.

Impetuously, he said, "Oh, yeah, before I forget."

Kagome couldn't help but respond with a grotesque, "What?"

"If you tell _anyone, _I'll kill you and your family and your friends. This is just between me and you, sweetheart. Got it?"

Kagome couldn't speak. It was as if he had read her mind! Great, just what she needed: a psycho killer who could read minds.

"I said, Got it?" He demanded, louder this time.

"Y-Yes. I g-got it." Kagome replied.

"Good." He sounded pleased. "Talk to you tomorrow, sweetheart."

The line went dead and she dropped the phone. As the emotions filled up within her, she screamed aloud, "No! Kagura, Kikyo, I'm so sorry! I'm _sorry! _Please forgive me! If I could stop him, I would!" Tears trailed down her face, leaving streaks, but she continued on wailing. "Please don't hate me…Please!"

The doorbell rang.

Kagome jumped. He was there. He was there and she knew it. He was coming by to say, 'hello.'

She quickly hung up the phone, which had begun to buzz eerily and irritably. Cautiously, ever so slowly, she approached the door, all the while thinking of a way to kill him if he tried anything. Or maybe she could kill him as soon as he set foot in the house just because he was a killer.

She timidly pulled the door open and looked out to find her cousin, Bankotsu. She felt all the air rush out of her in a relieved sigh -- she had been holding it in fear -- and she opened the door to let him in.

"You all right?" He asked, looking her over. "You look…Pale."

Kagome nodded nonchalantly. "Oh, I'm fine. I was just upset, is all."

Bankotsu nodded in understanding. "That's why I came by. To check on you, I mean. I came back to the gym today and found your friends. They said you didn't feel well, so you came home."

Kagome couldn't help but smile, despite her mood. Bankotsu had always been nice, looking out for those he loved. "I'm okay. I just needed some time alone to rest."

Bankotsu smiled. "All right. Good to know. If you need anything, gimme a call."

Kagome gave him and thumbs up and they hugged briefly before he left.

As soon as he was gone, however, Kagome locked every single lock on all the door and windows and closed every shade. It made her feel better, knowing that he couldn't get in or see her.

She sighed heavily and went up to her room where she promptly sighed on to check email. She had one message. It was a chilling one that caused her to shudder and made tears come back to her eyes:

_I'm heading out now to kill the girl you wanted me to. I should be back in an hour, unless I decide to make her suffer. Then, it may take as long as three hours. You'll be hearing about it on the news in the morning, sweetheart. _

_Goodnight._

* * *

Note- There we go! How was it? Sorry it took so long. I hope this chapter was entertaining enough for you. Eighty seven reviews for only three chapters? Holy crap! This story is probably going to be even more popular than Broken Hearts! 


	5. Chapter 5

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha. Duh! I wish I did, though.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl with average friends. But after a strange online conversation, horrible attacks start happening all around the city she once known to be safe. Someone wants something from her and they are scaring her and torturing her. But who is it and what do they want? Can she really escape death?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Five

* * *

He had been right. Kagome knew he would have been all along, but it was still horrifying to know that he was right; to know that he'd killed another innocent girl. Kagome felt even more horrible when she remembered that _she _had been the one to pick out the victim -- Kagura Iwamura.

Kagome had been gloomy all during school and had passed through her classes by sitting and staring at the floor. Everyone had been concerned about her, asking if she was all right. She told them she was and went on about her business.

During her Geometry class, however, the principal made an urgent announcement:

"--I am so sorry to interrupt your classes, everyone, but I have some distressing news. Sometime last night, one of your fellow classmates was murdered in her home. Her body was found late last night when her mother arrived home from work--"

Kagome continued staring at the floor. She had known it was coming. If it wasn't on the morning news, it would be at school. If not at school, then on the afternoon news.

"--What is even more tragic is that her younger sister was also murdered--"

Kagome gasped and jerked her eyes up to the microphone from which the principal's voice was emanating. He had killed her little sister? Why had he done it?

"--There will be a ceremony to honor Kagura Iwamura tomorrow. Until then, school is released early. I am so sorry that you all have to deal with two murders in one week--

Kagome simply stood up and left her class, perplexed and poignant. She got her belongings out of her locker and left the school campus, staring down at the sidewalk in dejection as she went on silently. She had told him to kill Kagura. Why had he murdered her younger sister? It was sick! How could he have done such a thing?

Kagome unlocked the door to her house and went inside, throwing her bag down on the couch and going up to her room. She got online and waited for everyone else to sign on. Nobody did.

Eventually, Kagome had fallen in a light slumber, her head on her desk, and the sound of an instant message caught her attention:

**Death986: **Well, hello, Kagome. You heard about it, didn't you? At school, I mean.

Kagome stared at the message for a long time. How could he have known that she had heard it at the school instead of on the news? What if he…

**Miko17: **I heard about it. How did you know that I heard at the school?

**Death986: **Because I go to your school.

Kagome felt her heart drop to her feet. She brought a shaking hand up to her mouth and placed it gingerly against her lips. With the other hand, she touched her chest as her heart rumbled like a stampede of horses.

**Miko17: **Who are you? Quit messing with me!

**Death986: **I can't do that. We still have to finish our game.

**Miko17: **Why did you kill her little sister?

**Death986: **She was in the way. If her mother had been there, I would have killed her as well.

Kagome let out an involuntary cry. "Shut up! Go away and leave me alone!" She commanded, tears coming to her eyes.

**Death986: **I can't leave you alone, sweetheart. We have a game to finish. Plus, you're fun to play with.

Kagome screamed again, stopping when she realized that he had heard her. Where was he? She began to breathe heavily as tears trailed down her cheeks. She rose to her feet and began looking around outside. When he sent another message, she instinctively went over to her computer and peered at the screen.

**Death986: **You won't find me outside.

Kagome's breath hitched in her throat and she felt her legs grow weak. Still, she managed to type a message with shaking fingers:

**Miko17: **Where are you, you psycho? Why do you have to mess with _me?_

No reply came for a long while. As the time passed, Kagome stood in the center of her room, listening to the clicking of her clock and the thudding of her heart. He wasn't outside. And he was somewhere that was in hearing range of her and where he could see every one of her actions.

Kagome realized, with a sickening churn of her stomach, that she had left the door unlocked. She wanted to run to the door to lock it, but wasn't sure if it was too late and he would leap out and get her or if she should ask him first. She decided, after much contemplation, to go with the latter:

**Miko17: **You're inside, aren't you?

**Death986: **I was wondering how long it would take you to figure it out. You're a smart girl, Higurashi, but in times that require desperate measures, you're a little slow.

**Miko17: **Get out. Now.

**Death986: **Now why would I do that?

Kagome looked toward the phone that rested on the dresser on the other side of her room. She knew it'd be risky, calling the cops, but she had no other choice. She was stuck inside her home with a murderer and needed to let someone know. "Get out of my house, right now!" She shouted.

The same raspy voice she had heard on the phone the night before tisk-tisked her from somewhere unseen. "I wouldn't mess with that phone if I were you. I have a gun with me, and I won't hesitate to use it on you and your friends."

Kagome, who had been extending a hand toward her phone, paused with a gasp. He was keeping well on his promise, that was for sure. "Then get out," she hissed, with as much courage as she could muster. "You can shoot me if you want, it'll be another victim to add to your list."

She heard some light chuckling. "Then I won't be able to play the game with you." It grew silent until he repeated, "and you're so fun to play with."

Sure, he had said it online. But to hear him say it in real life, somewhere in her house, caused her to shudder. Her heart even missed a beat. "Well, then, if I'm so fun to play with and you don't want to shoot me, then get out." She began reaching for the phone once more.

"Fine," the deep voice growled, nonchalantly. "I'll leave. But I'll be coming back to pay you a visit. You can count on it."

Kagome let a sigh of relief escape her lips as she heard the door close downstairs. She waited for almost twenty minutes before going downstairs and locking it and coming back up to her room. She didn't want to tell anyone about her encounter, knowing that either A) They wouldn't believe her; or B) It would endanger them, not to mention herself.

However, he instant messaged her again:

**Death986: **So, who's next on your list?

**Miko17: **No more, please.

**Death986: **The game isn't over yet, babe. So there has to be more. Who is it?

**Miko17: **Go to hell.

**Death986: **If you don't tell me, I'll make sure that's where you end up. And all your little friends.

Kagome felt all her muscles tense and she stared at the computer. Here it went. Time to pick yet another victim for him to kill. She slammed her fists against her temples as if to block all sound. She squeezed her eyes closed tightly. "I can't do it! I don't _want _to do it!"

**Death986: **Well?

Kagome peered at the screen with teary eyes.

**Miko17: **No. Nobody.

She signed off. She couldn't bear the thought of telling him to kill another girl -- or anybody for that matter. She just took a long shower and went to bed early. He could deal with not having any victims.

Unfortunately, it didn't seem that way when she awoke the next morning and checked her email:

_I see how you wanna be, babe. Since you didn't tell me who you wanted dead, I picked someone at random and I killed them last night. It's all your fault, too. You should tell me from now on, cause if I kill someone at random again, it could be someone close to your heart. Like Inuyasha for example. _

* * *

Note- There you have it! Hope you enjoyed. Review and let me know what you think. 


	6. Chapter 6

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha. Duh! I wish I did, though.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl with average friends. But after a strange online conversation, horrible attacks start happening all around the city she once known to be safe. Someone wants something from her and they are scaring her and torturing her. But who is it and what do they want? Can she really escape death?

In the last chapter, everyone thought that Inuyasha was the one who was going to be murdered. That isn't the case. He was merely used as an example.

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Six

* * *

(Killer's P.O.V.)

I lurked in the darkness on the edge of a very nice, large home, waiting for my chosen victim to arrive so I could complete the task I had set out to do. I jadedly fingered the knife in my glove covered hands, examining the blade in fixation as the waning moonlight reflected off of it. Soon, however, it was sure to be drenched in crimson, ruining its stunning silver and metallic colors. Sighing, I sheathed it back and knelt down lower into the tall grass.

I found my thoughts wandering through the depths of my mind and I soon began thinking of Kagome. A grin slowly spread across my lips as I envisioned the look that would befall her face after she learned of the murder tomorrow. I would show her once and for all. She needed to tell me who she wanted me to kill or else it might cost her. If I ever had to kill at random again, I was sure to choose her little Inuyasha.

It's all because of her that I have to kill at random tonight instead of hunting down her chosen victim and following them home. If she had, I wouldn't be forced to kill this idiot.

Snorting, I relaxed my tired muscles and pondered over my list of possible victims: Sango, Kanna, Shoiori, Sotan, Rin…Ah the possibilities. That was only the girl population though. If it were guys, my list would be something more like this, in order: Inuyasha, Sesshomaru, Kohaku, and Hiten. I wouldn't consider killing Kagome because, after all, she's the one who chooses my victims and she's such a wonderful game player.

A car pulled into the driveway. I could tell it was him from the moment it parked -- his shiny red Firebird. He climbed out of the car, locking it as he did so, and closed the door with a gentle slam. I ducked low into the grass so he would not see me. When he had climbed up the steps and had unlocked his door, and I was positive he had not seen me, I followed. When I reached the door, I extended a hand and took hold of the doorknob and gave it a slow, easy turn. Unlocked. Just as I had predicted.

So I let myself in. It was one of the things I did best.

I heard him fumbling around in the kitchen -- probably trying to find some dinner, who knew? -- and so I went there. I peeked around a corner and saw him, hurriedly putting a meal together before stuffing it into the microwave. It was a shame that he wouldn't be able to eat it.

For a brief moment, I thought that I should let him enjoy his last meal in front of the television or whatever. So I that is what I decided to do. I found a hiding spot and waited.

I had thought he was going to watch television. However, he went straight into a different room and I followed, staring at him from behind. It was his room -- I could tell from the mess. His bed was unkempt and dirty clothes were strewn everywhere. Reminded me of my own room, actually.

He was sitting at a computer, wolfing down his food and instant messaging with his friends. How sweet. I couldn't wait to dig my knife into his flesh and talk to some of his friends myself and tell them he was dead.

I relished in this thought for a few minutes, staring at his back. Soon that back would be full of holes created by a hunting knife. I couldn't wait. I was growing giddy with excitement and I could barely contain it all. But when he rose to his feet holding his dirty dishes, I knew then that I needed to hide. I want into the closest room I could find and watched as he exited his own and went right past me.

I managed to contain a sinister laugh as I watched him open the fridge and pull out a bottled drink. He opened it, tossing the cap carelessly to the floor and began drinking thirstily.

When he walked into his room once more, leaving the drink behind on the counter, I followed and slowly, ever so slowly, crept up behind him, lifting my knife above my head, and thrusting it down into his back.

He screamed in agony and spun around, pulling the knife free from his body. He looked wildly around until his gaze eventually landed on me. "Who the hell--?" He barely managed to say as I plunged the knife into his stomach. He careened forward and yelled again in pain. But I just continued stabbing. He pitched forward with every stab. It was pure bliss for me to carry out my dirty work.

What a shame, however, that he wouldn't get to see the face of his killer, for I was wearing a cover-up and sunglasses and a baseball hat pull low over my eyes.

I listened to his screams, I examined the blood covering the floor and his body, and I dared to stare deep into his eyes. What a shame…Kagome would be heartbroken. But it was all her fault that I had to kill him in the first place.

"Kagome says hi," I growled as watched as an expression of shock played over his face before he sported one of pain and sorrow.

"B-Bastard," he choked, blood spilling from the corners of his mouth. He collapsed onto the floor.

"Honestly," I said, smirking malevolently. "She put me up to this. She hates you."

His eyes widened and he fell onto his stomach. He wasn't moving, so I assumed he had died.

Heaving a sigh, I went to his computer where one instant message awaited, the person talking frantically.

**Miko17: **Koga, you there? Koga, where are you?

I had to tell her. I couldn't wait for her to find out tomorrow or the next day. So I typed a message:

**WolfBoy92: **Sorry Kagome…Koga's dead.

There was a long pause and I waited, eager to see her response.

**Miko17: **Koga…are you messing with me?

I knew that, deep down, she knew the truth. She knew it was me.

**WolfBoy92: **I told you. Koga's dead. Quit playing dumb, you know it's me.

**Miko17: **You jerk! How _could _you?

**WolfBoy92: **I told you to pick someone. And you didn't. So I picked someone at random. It was simple, I came in and stabbed him over and over again.

**Miko17: **Stop it!

I felt satisfied that I'd upset her. My work was complete for the night. I turned to leave, but I saw that Koga hadn't quite given up. He had risen to his feet -- barely -- and was struggling to stand. "Not dead yet?"

"Not quite, bastard." He choked.

I smirked and sliced him across the throat, sending blood everywhere. He was surely dead now. He slumped to the floor.

I turned back toward the computer, the screen had blood splattered all over it. But I didn't care. I typed one last message:

**WolfBoy92: **Talk to ya tomorrow, babe.

* * *

Note- There! How was it? Let me know! 


	7. Chapter 7

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha. Duh! I wish I did, though.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl with average friends. But after a strange online conversation, horrible attacks start happening all around the city she once known to be safe. Someone wants something from her and they are scaring her and torturing her. But who is it and what do they want? Can she really escape death?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Seven

* * *

Kagome screamed as she read the instant message over and over again. She slapped her fists against the sides of her head and closed her eyes tightly. This wasn't happening. This wasn't happening! Koga was _not _dead. He was alive and well. He was going to ask her to the dance again like he did every year. He was going to offer to carry her books and he was going to ask her on dates. He was _not _going to die! He _couldn't _die!

"No!" She shrieked. This guy was taking it too far! She had hardly known the young schoolteacher, and she had only known Kikyo and Kagura by name and gossip. But Koga…He was another story. He was closer to her than a lot of people. Maybe not as close as Sango or Miroku, but she had considered him close.

"Koga…" She tried to stand, but only succeeded in collapsing to the floor on her knees. "You're supposed to be here," she sobbed. "You can't leave. You were supposed to fight!"

Sango suddenly instant messaged her and she got back into her chair shakily.

**Slayer258: **Hey. You ok? You haven't talked to me…well to any of us lately. What's wrong?

Kagome typed a message with trembling fingers.

**Miko17: **Koga's dead.

**Slayer258: **What? What do you mean?

**Miko17: **Come over here and I'll show you.

**Slayer258: **Um, ok. Be there in a little bit.

Kagome sighed in relief, knowing that she wasn't going to be alone anymore. It seemed like Sango hadn't believed her, but she would see. Once she saw the instant messages, then she'd realize that she wasn't lying. She would bring the truth into the light and put this freak where he belonged -- in jail.

The doorbell scared her and she jumped, but went downstairs and opened it. Sango walked in and Kagome led her upstairs. "Come on. It's right there." She pointed to the screen.

Sango examined it for a long while and finally sighed in exasperation. "That jerk--"

Kagome thought she was talking about the killer. She interrupted with, "See? Told you guys!"

"--Messing with you that way!" Sango finished.

Kagome's shoulders slumped. Sango still wasn't convinced! Instead of showing her that there was a killer on the loose -- a killer who was torturing and threatening her -- Kagome had made Sango think that Koga was messing with her!

"Come on," Sango said angrily, going down the stairs, fuming.

Kagome's heart began to beat wildly. "Where to?" Even though she knew, she had to ask. She reluctantly followed, holding onto the banister uneasily.

"To Koga's," came Sango's hasty reply. "I'm going to make him stop messing with you."

"But--"

"No buts, come on." Sango walked outside and Kagome, with a thudding heart, quick breath, and trembling hands, followed her and closed the door.

Koga's house wasn't far away -- big surprise, it seemed everyone lived near each other -- but the walk there seemed to take only a few seconds. Kagome was so anxious that she continually fidgeted and rubbed her sweating palms together. Sango noticed and smiled reassuringly, "Don't worry. He's not going to hurt you. I'll hurt _him _if he tries."

Kagome forced a meek smile, hoping that it appeared grateful and relieved -- the opposite of what she was feeling. She was endangering both herself as well as Sango by following her to Koga's house. Either 'Death986' was still lurking there in the house, examining and enjoying all he had done to Koga, or he was somewhere nearby, watching them. If he were doing either, Sango would probably end up dead -- as well as Inuyasha and Miroku -- and Kagome could be in a lot of trouble.

Gazing at the sky, Kagome managed to momentarily escape into a world less dangerous. It helped her relax, calm her nerves.

This peace, this wonderful serenity that she hadn't seen in weeks, vanished as they approached the house. The waning moonlight helped them to find their way up the steps and the front door. Once there, however, the two girls noticed the crimson stains that obscured the doorknob. Sango gave a bemused and worried glance toward Kagome, who continued to gape at the doorknob. "Kagome…" she breathed.

Kagome had enough courage to reach out and take hold of the knob, cringing in disgust as the still warm liquid oozed through her fingers. She didn't falter and she gave the knob a slow and gentle twist.

Unlocked.

"Sango…" Kagome choked through numb lips.

"Let's go," was Sango's response.

"Sango," Kagome practically cried.

Sango looked at her in befuddlement. "What?"

"There's blood on the doorknob!" Kagome exclaimed, as if Sango hadn't noticed. She probably just didn't care. "The door is _unlocked_ and there's _blood _on the knob!"

"Well we have to go see if he's all right!" Sango yelled back, pushing the door open. It was dark inside and Kagome feared stepping inside. She could end up stepping into a death trap. Sango, however, wasn't as deterred. She stepped inside cautiously, looking around before proceeding into the kitchen. There was an open drink bottle on the counter -- half its contents gone -- and its cap a few feet away. "Koga?" She called. "Koga, we need to talk!"

Kagome managed to muster up enough courage to head down a dark, narrow hallway. She saw pictures hanging on the walls of Koga and his family. Some showed him when he was younger and some were pictures of him at the present time. Despite the fact that she never really took a good liking to him, he was pretty good looking.

Kagome sighed heavily, her breath trembling. Her gaze flicked down to the floor and she froze when she saw the spots dotting the carpet.

Blood.

Kagome didn't scream -- her first reaction -- and simply followed them. Her stomach suddenly felt hallow as the spots of blood grew larger and larger until they were close to puddles, soaking the carpet. They led her to a room -- a very messy one, clothes scattered here and there -- and when she saw the source of the blood, she thought she would puke.

Koga's limp and lifeless body was sprawled across the floor in front of his computer desk, his neck slashed, multiple stabs wounds obscured him. His eyes were open in shock and fear -- maybe even sadness?

Kagome placed a hand to her heart. Koga _was _dead. 'Death986' had spoke the truth when he had talked to her under Koga's screen name. Everyone would see now. They would believe her. She would get some help.

In her dismay and despondency, she hadn't noticed the person sitting on the bed. Not until they spoke, "Kagome…"

She jumped, with a squeal, and turned to look at Miroku. He was looking at her woefully. "Miroku…W-What are you--?"

"I got a message. It was under Koga's screen name. Saying he was dead. I thought it was a prank and came over to see for myself. But…Kagome…"

Kagome nodded and stumbled over to him, giving him a hug. He returned the embrace -- tighter than she would have expected -- and began stroking her hair. Kagome had thought it odd, but said nothing. Both of them were suffering and he was simply trying to calm her, right?

Sango came in, saw the body, and let out a horrified cry. She sank to her knees and hugged her knees to her chest, sobbing.

"I told you, Sango," Kagome said. Her gaze had become blurry as unshed tears pooled in her eyes. "I told you…"

"Shh," Miroku whispered, hugging her even tighter. Why wasn't he going to comfort Sango? Sango was his direct target of affection, so why was he hugging her? "Shh, it's all right."

Kagome stood up, pulling herself free from his arms -- even though his embrace was warm and slightly comforting -- and knelt down to examine the body. There was a note on Koga's back, smudged with blood. Kagome reached out shakily and picked it up. It read:

_Are you happy now, Kagome? You caused this. He wouldn't have died if you had only told me who you wanted dead. But you didn't and Koga's life is now over. _

_Good job._

Kagome screamed and threw the note down. Sango lifted it up and read it and gave her a stern, incredulous glower. "Kagome…what is this note…talking about?"

Kagome slammed her palms against her temples and cried harder. "It wasn't my fault! I swear!"

Sango jumped to her feet, still crying, and glared. "You were picking out _victims_?" She practically screeched. "You were telling some sicko who to kill and you didn't _tell_ us?" She demanded, hurt filling her glossy eyes.

"I _couldn't_!" Kagome cried desperately. "He would've kill me, or you guys! I didn't want that to happen! Please, don't…do this to me!"

Kagome began weeping once again and Miroku got up and took her into his arms. "Sango, leave her alone. We'll talk more about this subject later. Call the police. We need to let them know about this."

Kagome hadn't wanted to call the cops in fear of being caught by 'Death986,' but she had no choice this time. After they had called the cops, Kagome called Inuyasha and told him. He had said he'd be right over.

Kagome stood by the door and stared out at the night. It seemed so peaceful on the outside. On the interior of this small town, however, it was something like a gruesome high school horror film. And she just happened to be the main character.

True to his word, like always, Inuyasha showed up before the police and when he entered the house, Sango showed him the body. He left the room, trying to hold down his dinner, and he found Kagome, sitting on the couch, crying. He sat beside of her. "Kagome?"

She turned and looked up at him woefully. "Inuyasha…I…" She broke down into hysterical sobbing once again and he -- much to her disclosure -- embraced her.

"Kagome," he began softly, running a hand up and down her back gingerly. "I'm sorry for not believing you in the first place. I'm sorry about everything."

"He was threatening me…" she confessed.

Inuyasha pulled away from her then. "Who?"

"The killer," she rasped, her lower lip trembling. "He threatened me…"

"Kagome, why didn't you tell us?" He demanded. He examined her face when she averted her eyes. Sighing, he pulled her back into his arms and leaned back into the couch. "All right. We'll talk about it later. Just calm down. Everything will be all right."

The police showed up a few minutes later. The examined Koga's body, inspected the house, and interrogated Inuyasha, Kagome, Miroku, and Sango.

Had they been there at all before he had been killed? Had they seen him before he had been killed? Did they know anyone who would want to kill him?

After all of the questions and a few phone calls to parents, they were able to leave. They had all agreed to stay with Kagome -- to keep her company as well as find out what the hell was going on -- and that's where they headed, ducking under the yellow police tape.

Once at Kagome's house, her mother asked them questions by the dozen and when they finally escaped her, they went up to her room. She was the last one there, and after she closed the door and turned to face her friends, they all had quizzical, curious, and angry expressions.

She had a lot of explaining to do.

* * *

Note- There! I feel bad for offing Koga, but it adds to the suspense. Who is the killer? Think you know? Let me know who you think. Also, tell me what you though of the chapter. Thanks! 


	8. Chapter 8

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha. Duh! I wish I did, though.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl with average friends. But after a strange online conversation, horrible attacks start happening all around the city she once known to be safe. Someone wants something from her and they are scaring her and torturing her. But who is it and what do they want? Can she really escape death?

I asked you guys to tell me who you thought the killer was. Naraku still stands, and since Koga has been killed, he can no longer be suspected, leaving Miroku as the new suspect. Miroku has been acting odd and Naraku hasn't made an appearance. Who could the killer be? Oh, the suspense!

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Eight

* * *

"So you mean to tell me," Inuyasha growled indignantly as he paced back and forth in the middle of Kagome's room, "That you were being threatened and that all of those people who had been killed…" He paused, remembering that Kikyo had been among 'those people' and gave Kagome a scornful look. "You _told _that creep to kill them all?" 

Kagome nodded. That was basically the truth. "I couldn't very well tell you guys. He would've killed you." She looked at all three of them ruefully.

"He wouldn't have." Inuyasha argued. "I would've killed him first."

"You don't know who he -- or she -- is!" Kagome countered defensively. "They would've killed you in a heartbeat, Inuyasha, and it would've been all my fault."

"So this," he demanded hotly, pointing to the front page of a newspaper her mother had bought. It talked about all of the murders that had taken place in their hometown -- other than Koga's, of course, since he had just been murdered only hours ago. "_This _isn't your fault? You aren't _responsible _for any of this?"

Kagome shook her head slowly and softly. When facing up to Inuyasha, this was a rash move, but she did it anyway. "I didn't kill them," was all she said.

"No," he agreed, clenching his fists. "But you told him who to kill! And they're dead! Congratulations!"

Kagome winced at the venom in his voice. She peered up at him woefully, her gaze becoming blurry as unshed tears pooled in her eyes. "I-I thought he was only kidding!" She screamed, her voice breaking with emotion. Sango came over from where she had been sitting in Kagome's computer chair and sat on the bed next to her friend, embracing her gently. Miroku just watched on in silence. Better to let them fight it out now. "I swear! I thought he was joking around, and I said the first person who came to mind."

"The schoolteacher?" Miroku inquired gently.

"No," she said, staring at the floor. "Kikyo." She heard Inuyasha growl out loud and pop his knuckles. She flinched at this and looked up at him. "I'm so sorry, Inuyasha! If I had known…If I had know what he was going to do, I…I wouldn't have said anything!" She felt warm tears sliding down her cheeks, but she didn't care.

Inuyasha ran a clawed hand through his silvery hair. He looked frustrated, confused, and angry all at once.

"Inuyasha…I'm sorry." She stood up and went over to him, causing him to stop pacing. She flung herself against his chest and sobbed, taking in handfuls of his shirt. "Please don't be angry with me. I am so sorry."

Inuyasha shot a baffled glance toward Miroku and Sango before wrapping his strong arms around her and rubbing her back. "It's all right," he said. "I'm not angry." As he embraced Kagome, he couldn't help but notice the look on Miroku's face. Was it jealousy? It couldn't have been.

Kagome pulled her face away from his chest to peek at him with watery eyes. "Are you sure? I mean…I was the one who cause all of those people's deaths…"

Inuyasha hugged her against him once more. "No, it wasn't you."

Sango suddenly asked, "Shouldn't they cancel school? With the murders and everything, I mean."

Miroku pondered over this momentarily. "Good question. Since the majority of people getting killed are from our school, you would think they'd close it until the case was solved." He continued to think about this for a while.

Kagome finally calmed down and pulled away from Inuyasha, her face flushed. She felt horrible. She had told a murderer who to kill, given him a list of targets, practically! And one was her friend's cousin, and her other friend's ex. And when she tried to get away from 'Death986' and not tell him another victim…He took things into his own hands. He killed Koga, one of her best friends.

The sound of an instant message caught their attention and they turned to face the computer. Kagome had left it on and had never signed off. Kagome approached it slowly, looking at the screen warily. When she saw the all too familiar screen name, she let out a cry of fear and distress and turned away. Inuyasha, with a snarl, got into the computer chair and typed a message to respond to the one 'Death986' had sent:

**Death986: **How are you feeling, Kagome?

**Miko17: **Fuck off, bastard.

**Death986: **Now, now, Inuyasha, you wouldn't want to be my next victim, now, would you?

Inuyasha stiffened visibly but did not falter.

**Miko17: **That's not very likely.

**Death986: **Oh it's very likely. Look what happened to Koga. And your little _girlfriend_ Kikyo. Have you thanked Kagome yet?

**Miko17: **It's not her fault.

**Death986: **Oh, but it is. She _told _me to kill her. And since she told you and Sango and Miroku, it looks like she's telling me to kill you guys, too.

Inuyasha turned around to look at Kagome and found her in Sango's arms, trying not to face the screen, tears running down her face slowly. He felt hot anger and possessiveness boiling through him, and he whirled around and typed a message:

**Miko17: **You aren't killing anymore, you got it?

**Death986: **That's quite funny, Inuyasha.

**Miko17: **It wasn't a joke.

**Death986: **It must have been, since all I am going to do is kill, regardless of what you tell me I can and cannot do.

Inuyasha shot another tentative glance over his shoulder at Kagome and faced the screen once more.

**Miko17: **Whatever. Just don't hurt Kagome.

**Death986: **Ah, protective, aren't we? You're infatuated with her.

**Miko17: **No. Just leave her alone.

**Death986: **But she's such the game player! I enjoy playing with her.

**Miko17: **Go to hell.

**Death986: **After you.

Inuyasha signed Kagome off and spun the chair around to face his friends. Kagome looked at him helplessly. He wasn't sure of what to expect from this 'Death986,' but he knew it wouldn't be anything good, especially since he'd already killed a lot of other innocent people.

"What now?" She asked hoarsely.

Inuyasha shrugged.

"Did he know it was you?" Kagome wondered aloud, even though she knew.

Inuyasha nodded. "Yeah, he knew."

Kagome gasped and started trembling. "He knows I told you," she whimpered. "He's going to come after you guys. He's going to come after me…"

Inuyasha was there, by her side, on the bed, embracing her in a second. "No, he won't mess with us," he assured her. "We'll be okay." But from the look Miroku was giving him -- a jealous, envious, glare -- he wasn't so sure.

His suspicions grew more, but he did not dare mention it.

* * *

Note- There! I won't be able to update for a couple of days because I'm going to a friend's house. Sorry everyone! Hope you enjoyed! 


	9. Chapter 9

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha. Duh! I wish I did, though.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl with average friends. But after a strange online conversation, horrible attacks start happening all around the city she once known to be safe. Someone wants something from her and they are scaring her and torturing her. But who is it and what do they want? Can she really escape death?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Nine

* * *

Inuyasha had stayed up for the better part of the night, watching his friends sleep around him, crowded in Kagome's room. Sango and Kagome occupied the bed while he and Miroku, being the wonderful gentlemen that they were, had politely offered to sleep on the floor. He hadn't been able to sleep so he settled for leaning against the wall instead, his arms crossed across his chest, his amber eyes examining the room closely.

After about an hour and a half, he rose to his feet and stretched. As he did so, his gaze flicked down to Kagome, who was tugging slightly at the sheets. He heard her mumbling incoherent words and watched her as she impetuously rolled over violently. "No," she murmured. "Leave me alone. Get away from me."

Inuyasha sighed. Poor girl. She had been through too much and she didn't need these nasty dreams making her life even worse. He reached out to her, but quickly drew his hand back. He just couldn't bring himself to wake her up. She needed as much rest as she could get -- even if it were nightmare filled.

Sighing in frustration, he sat at her computer and switched it on, making sure that he was quiet, and signed on under Kagome's name -- she had her password saved into the computer. When he saw that she had mail, he looked over the subjects and who they were from. When he saw one from 'Death986,' he instantly double clicked on it and read it:

_Kagome if you're reading this, then tell Inuyasha that he should watch his back from now on. He was already a target on my long, long list, but I haven't killed him for your sake. Since he signed off on me like that and was very rude to me, I just might come after him, anyway._

Inuyasha paused in his reading long enough to chuckle lightly. Who did this guy think he was? God? Just because he could end lives, did he think he was invincible? Well, Inuyasha had news for him -- he wasn't. And he was going to prove it to him, one way or another. Just let him come after him -- he'd regret it.

He continued reading:

_Maybe you should watch out for Miroku. I've seen the way he looks at you, and it's disgusting. I'm actually quite surprised that he hasn't drug you off somewhere to have a little fun with you -- alone. But I'm sure he has his reasons. _

Inuyasha cringed and shot a glower in Miroku's direction. He was still sleeping soundly and appeared to be innocent of any accusations and suspicions. He was his best friend, and hadn't seemed like some kind of psychotic killer who screwed with any girl's mind.

He then turned and checked on Kagome, only to find her sleeping more peacefully than before. He once again resumed reading:

_It's not my place to talk about other peoples' intentions or behaviors, though, so I'll get straight to the point. Who is next on your list? You better tell me this time or else Sango will definitely get it. Miroku will be next, then Inuyasha. They always say to save the best for last. That's what I intend to do if you continue to avoid me. I'll kill and kill and kill until there is no one left but you. You will die slowly and painfully -- after you watch me kill Inuyasha, that is. So I'm giving you until the day after tomorrow to get back to me. _

_Later, babe._

Inuyasha growled and clicked out of the email. Who did this guy think he was? He didn't own Kagome, so why should he get to refer to her as 'babe' ? He stopped clenching his fists and thought for a moment. Why was he so…_jealous? _He realized that he had been quite protective when it came to Kagome lately. What was up with _that_?

Sighing, he switched her computer off and laid down beside of Miroku once more. It was time to steal a little sleep.

_-----_

Kagome opened her eyes and sat up, blinking in order to try and see better. She had been having trouble sleeping, and finally awoke. She examined the room groggily and saw Miroku and Inuyasha sleeping on the floor peacefully. Her gaze then flicked toward her balcony window where she saw something peculiar.

A face.

Her heart skipped a beat and her blood ran cold, but she didn't dare scream. She had a bone to pick with this guy; he'd killed Koga and she wanted to cuss him out. She pushed the blankets back and climbed out of bed, creeping over to the window. When she got there, she saw he was wearing dark sunglasses and a ball cap pulled low over his face. This, however, did not keep her from sliding the window open and hissing, "Bastard, what are you doing here?"

"I came to pay you a visit." Came his deep reply.

"Well, you can just leave." Kagome growled indignantly. "I don't want to have anything to do with you."

"Too bad," he said, faking a sad sigh. "You're so fun to play with."

"Go away." Kagome commanded in the sternest voice she could muster. "You need to leave me and my friends and my family alone." She placed her hand on the window sill so she could support herself while she leaned into his face to try and intimidate him -- though she didn't think it would've been able to work -- when she felt liquid beneath her fingers.

Sucking in a breath, she lifted her trembling hand up and examined it, to find crimson liquid. Her eyes widened in horror and her mouth fell open into a silent scream. She looked toward 'Death986' for an answer as to what the strange, scarlet substance was and, despite the darkness, she saw him smirking.

"Blood," he said.

Kagome whirled around to call out to Sango, to get help, anything. Except that Sango wasn't in the bed where she should've been. In fact, she wasn't anywhere to be seen. Kagome spun around to face'Death986' and demand what he had done with Sango, but he was gone, as well.

The only things that remained were a blood covered window sill and an open window.

* * *

Note-- There you go! Sorry it took so long. I was with a friend all weekend and then I got hung up with school work. I'm running out of ideas. Got any? Send them in! I just might use them. All I need is four more reviews to get to two hundred! Great work, guys. 


	10. Chapter 10

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha. Duh! I wish I did, though.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl with average friends. But after a strange online conversation, horrible attacks start happening all around the city she once known to be safe. Someone wants something from her and they are scaring her and torturing her. But who is it and what do they want? Can she really escape death?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Ten

* * *

Kagome opened her mouth to utter a scream of terror, but nothing came out. Her mouth had gone peculiarly dry and her blood had ran cold in her veins. She gaped in horror at the red substance on her trembling fingers as it dribbled down her wrist and her forearm. She nearly gagged and turned her arm upside down so it would drip down her fingers and onto the window sill where it had originally come from. She examined the sill and saw that it was only a handful of blood, as if it had been wiped onto the wood by something. A body, perhaps? Or a knife?

"Kagome?"

The mentioned spun around and saw Sango standing in the doorway, her hair tangled and her eyes drooping from sleep. She raised her hand above her head and stretched, releasing an exhausted yawn. "What are you doing up? I hope I didn't wake you by going to the bathroom."

"Sango…?" Kagome felt her heart rate drop back down to normal. So he _hadn't _killed Sango like she had concluded he had. Sango had only gone to the bathroom. But where had the blood come from? The room spun sickeningly around her as she realized that it must have been Koga's blood. 'Death986' must have wiped it off of his knife onto the window sill.

"Yeah? What is it?" Sango examined her curiously, her head tilted to the side slightly. When she noticed her friend's horrified expression, her face instantly morphed into a concerned stare. "What? Is there something wrong?"

"I-I…He-The Blood…Koga…" Kagome's lower lip trembled and Sango was embracing her in a second, rubbing her hair as she sobbed into her nightshirt. She whispered quietly in her ear that everything would be okay and that she needed to calm down before she woke the boys. It was too late, however, and they were surrounding Kagome in the blink of an eye, asking her what happened and if she was all right. Kagome told them that she was and showed them the blood that was smeared upon the window sill. Sango looked as if she might have been sick, Miroku hardly paid attention to it and more attention to how she was feeling, and Inuyasha looked grim faced and deep in thought.

"Are you hurt?" Miroku inquired, looking over her for wounds.

Kagome shook her head. "No, he didn't come here to hurt me. I think he came here to warn me."

"He was here?" Inuyasha demanded, jerking his gaze from the crimson that was splattered on the sill to gape at Kagome. Kagome nodded meekly and was rewarded with a shrill, "Why didn't you wake us up?"

Kagome flinched and only answered him with a sigh. This managed to silence him and Sango asked, wrenching her eyes from the blood, "Warn you about what, do you think?"

"He's going to kill more people, I know he is." Kagome's vision became a blur as she brought her woeful gaze up to meet theirs. "I think you guys might be on his list."

Inuyasha growled indignantly and glared out the window. Miroku sat in silence, looking calm and collected. Sango seemed a little more panicked. "Well, can't we go to the police? They should be able to help us, right?"

Kagome began to look rueful. "I don't know. If the police come here, then there is a possibility of him coming in here and killing every one of them before turning on us. And if we run to the police…Well, we'd be just like sitting ducks. He says he's watching me, and I know he can see me. He's probably out there now, watching us talk. If we run, he'll chase us down and kill us." A tear slid down her cheek as she finished.

Sango hiccupped and let out a small whimper. Miroku went over to her and encircled her with his arms and began rocking her back and forth. Kagome collapsed onto her bed and looked at Inuyasha, who still stood glowering out the window. "Inuyasha?"

"What?" He demanded.

"What do you think we should do?"

He shrugged his broad shoulders and the room grew silent, except for Sango's gentle crying and Miroku's whispers of comfort. Inuyasha stayed silent for a while before turning to Kagome and saying, "I think we should go to the police."

Kagome's eyes widened. "Now?"

"No, not now," he said, as if she were the dumbest thing to walk the earth in a million years. He lowered his voice just in case someone was outside eavesdropping -- and they probably were, "We have to wait until he's not expecting it. We'll pretend to come over here for a group study thing and then run for it after a while."

Kagome considered this for a moment. It seemed to be a good plan. Except for one flaw. "What am I supposed to do until then?"

It became eerily silent in the room once more and Kagome knew she had caught Inuyasha off guard. At length, however, he shrugged and said, somewhat reluctantly, "The same thing you've been doing, I guess."

Kagome, Miroku, and Sango gasped in unison and gawked at Inuyasha in astonishment. "What's the matter with you?" Miroku demanded, his voice stentorian.

"Hasn't everyone already suffered enough?" Sango cried, tears flowing from her eyes. "Haven't _you _suffered enough?"

Inuyasha stiffened visibly. That sentence had struck home.

"How could you just ask her to keep telling him to kill more people?" Sango asked, her voice breaking. "How _could _you?"

Inuyasha whirled around to face her, suddenly acrimonious, "One; because we don't want him to think that anything has changed, and two; she didn't have any problem with it before so this shouldn't be a problem!"

"I do too have a problem with it!" Kagome screamed, leaping to her feet. "I've had to live these few days with peoples' deaths on my conscious! I don't like to do that!" Her sudden outburst of anger suddenly turned to sorrow and she flung herself against his chest. "Don't make me do it anymore! Please! I don't want to cause more murders!"

Inuyasha let his frustration and anger subside and he embraced her. "All right, you don't have to. But you have to talk to him as if nothing happened."

Kagome peered up at him with watery eyes. "I…Don't think I can do that. He'll bug me until I tell him who to kill!"

Inuyasha brought her head back down against his chest. "Don't worry," he whispered, sinking onto the bed with her in his arms. "You'll figure it out. You'll make it work somehow."

* * *

Note- Yep, another chapter all wrapped up. Sorry it's so short. I'll try to make the next one longer. Please review and tell me what you thought. Any suggestions on who the killer is? Let me know because Naraku still stands and Miroku is quickly rising as a suspect among you fans! 


	11. Chapter 11

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha. Duh! I wish I did, though.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Eleven

Kagome desperately wanted to believe Inuyasha's words. She wanted to feel confident in herself; that she'd make everything work out somehow and they would get through it. But she knew that she couldn't last forever, and was surprised that she had survived this long.

She gazed out of the window beside of her, completely drowning out her chemistry teacher, and tried not to let the tears well up in her eyes. It had been two full days since everyone had found out of Koga's murder. Kagome was exceedingly surprised that school resumed as normal, even after the murders that had transpired in the last week or so. Wouldn't they cancel school or something? Wouldn't the police create a city wide curfew in order to save more lives and hunt down the killer?

The bell that signaled the end of class rang, startling Kagome, and she jumped, jerking her head back around to the classroom to look at all the students leaping out of their seats and racing for the door. She slowly gathered her things together and followed the crowd into the hallway. She went to her locker and put her stuff up, grabbing only the books she would need to do homework, and started heading down the hallway alone.

"Kagome!" A familiar voice shouted. The girl turned. Bankotsu caught up to her and gave her a rueful smile. "How are you?"

"I'm okay," Kagome managed to force a smile across her face.

"I heard about what happened," he continued as they rounded a corner and headed for the large double doors leading outside. "You know, you finding Koga's body and everything. I'm really sorry."

Kagome's fake smile faded away and was replaced by a look of fear and sorrow. "Miroku found him first. He said he had gotten the same message I had from the killer under Koga's screen name. Sango came to my house and we went to check on him. And…" she broke off with a slight tremor in her voice. "That's when we found him."

Bankotsu nodded in understanding, his smile now gone as well, and replaced with a serious expression. "And you called Inuyasha?"

Kagome stared straight ahead as they walked down the sidewalk away from the school. "Yeah," she said softly. She bit her bottom lip gently and stared at the ground. A car whizzed by, the radio turned up. "Promiscuous Girl," by Nelly Furtado. It was a good song, but she had other things to worry about…

…Like a murderer who was depending on her to choose his victims.

"Bankotsu," she said. "Are you going to be busy tonight?"

Bankotsu kicked a loose stone across the pavement. It landed a few feet ahead of them. He would, she knew, kick it again when they reached it. "I've got homework. That's all."

"I was hoping that, _maybe_, you know, you could come to my house and we could do homework together." She looked up at him with glossy brown eyes. "My mom is working late tonight and I _really _don't want to be alone."

He smiled and draped his arm across her shoulders -- something he used to do when they were younger. "No problem, kiddo." He used to call her kiddo all the time in elementary school and even in junior high, but he had ceased lately. She figured that he decided that she needed it now and started his old habits once again. "Hell, I'll even stay the night, if you need me to. My parents wouldn't mind too much. You know how much they like you."

Kagome felt her face flush a bit. Liked her? More like _adored_ her. They had always been quite fond of her, for reasons she could not fathom. Whenever she and Bankotsu used to play at the playground together, his parents always took her home with them and wouldn't let her leave until they were sure she had a full stomach. "Thanks," she mumbled, watching as they approached the stone.

"No problem." He smiled brightly at her. "You know I'd do anything for you." He kicked the stone and it went flying into the street. She watched it as it rolled alone the asphalt, eventually colliding with the sidewalk on the right side of the road. She continued to stare at the other side of the road woefully until Bankotsu inquired, "Something wrong, Kagome?"

"Huh?" She whipped her head around to face him.

He examined her sternly with his dark blue eyes. "You seem…I don't know. Upset. Is it about Koga? Cause if it is, I'm sorry for bringing it up. You know, about his murder."

Kagome shook her head. She felt lightheaded and her lips felt as if she had just gotten Novocain from the Dentist. "No. It's not that. It's just…"

Just what? She was about to tell him! She didn't want him in it; she didn't want him dead. She hadn't wanted her friends to know for the same reason, but thanks to that jackass, she had to inform them of her predicament. Had he left that note on purpose, in order to let her friends in on their little secret? Had he left it so they would get in on it anyway so he could kill them?

She swallowed something hard -- she wasn't even sure what it was, or if her throat was sore -- and sighed deeply.

"It's just what?" He looked at her questioningly. Soon, it grew quiet amongst them, the only sounds coming from the passing cars and other students walking home. He didn't take his gaze off her. It got so quiet that Kagome looked up curiously to see his expression. He quirked an eyebrow. "Is there something you're not telling me?"

Kagome glanced around apprehensively. "Look," she hissed through gritted teeth, keeping her voice low in case someone might hear. "I'll tell you when we get to my house. All right?"

His eyebrow went down. "That bad, huh?"

She nodded and looked ruefully at the sidewalk. What was she thinking? "That bad."

"All right. We'll talk at your house." He said as they rounded a curb, dodging a cluster of low hanging tree branches.

"I almost forgot," Kagome said suddenly. "How are your brothers?"

Bankotsu shrugged. "Fine, I guess."

"You guess?"

"Yeah. I haven't talked to them in a while." He smiled at her nonchalantly. "But I'm sure they're okay. You know them."

Kagome knew them, all right. Bankotsu was only related to Suikotsu and Jakotsu through his mother since they had different fathers. They used to come and visit Bankotsu all the time when they were younger and all four of them would hang out at the playground. They were okay guys. Not the best, but still decent.

They made it to Kagome's house and, once inside, Kagome locked the door securely.

Bankotsu looked at her. "Yeah, I think you're a little freaked."

"Wait until I tell you. You'll understand then." She said, throwing her book bag down on the couch. She wasn't about to do homework. She didn't feel like it. She wouldn't be able to concentrate. Instead, she would tell him her story, whether he did homework or not.

She grabbed a soda from the fridge -- she would need it eventually since her throat would be dry -- and went to her room. He followed, his backpack on his shoulder.

She plopped down in her computer chair and he found a place on her unmade bed. He didn't seem to mind the fact that it was a mess.

"Okay," she began, placing her soda on her computer desk beside of her. "This guy sent me an instant message about a week ago. He said some weird stuff -- like he wanted me and that he knew me. He said that I knew him. I kept trying to guess who he was, but every guess I made was wrong. It turns out, that he's the killer who's responsible for the dead people who have been found recently -- the school teacher, Kikyo, Kagura, Kagura's younger sister, and Koga. Before I knew he had killed anyone, he had killed the school teacher. But…" She broke off, glancing outside. What if he was there?

She quickly leapt up and closed all of her shades and sat back down.

"What? What is it?" He looked at her, his expression calm and even.

"Well…he threatened me. If I didn't pick out his victims, he'd kill Inuyasha, Miroku, and Sango. So…I did. I picked out Kikyo and Kagura. But I swear, I didn't mean for Kagura's sister to die. He said he killed her because she was in his way. And Koga…" She broke off once again. "I tried to get out of it by not telling him anymore victims. And he took it out on Koga. He told me that if I didn't choose for him, he'd choose at random. He told me to be careful if I did that because he could kill someone close to me."

Bankotsu continued to look calm and collected. Kagome was astonished that he hadn't grabbed her by the shirtfront and started screaming in her face. Instead, the first response he had was, "You were picking out victims--"

"I _had _to!" She protested, not letting him finish. "I didn't want my close friends to die!"

"--And you didn't tell me? Kagome, I would've helped you out, somehow. I would have done _something _to keep you from getting those girls killed. I would have tried to figure out who this bastard was so I could have killed him before he got to Koga."

Kagome's jaw sagged. That was _not _the reaction she had been expecting. But it was still heart warming to know that he would have helped.

"I appreciate that, but he would have killed you if he had known that you knew." She said flatly.

"Well, he wouldn't have found out." He countered.

"He knows where I live! He knows where my room is!" She cried, rising to her feet shakily. "He's been _in _my house!"

Now Bankotsu looked worried. "He's _what_?" He nearly shrieked. He had also gotten to his feet. "Kagome, did you tell anybody?"

"No! Are you mental?" She asked. "I tried to get to the phone, but he was watching me. He said if I called the cops, he would kill me and my friends. But I managed to get him to leave. He hasn't been in here since."

"Am I the only one you told?" He asked.

"No." She said softly. "After we found Koga dead, I had to tell Sango, Miroku, and Inuyasha."

"What'd they have to say about this?" He glanced warily at her computer.

"Inuyasha said I'd make it work somehow." She frowned. "I don't think I will. I have until tomorrow to pick out another person. I don't think I can." She bit back a sob and opened her soda. She took a long drink of it. Too bad it didn't make her feel better.

"You have to go to the cops." He said. "Or at least let me go."

It sounded like a good plan, especially in this bleak time. "I can't go to the cops--"

The phone suddenly ringing cut her off, startling her. Both Bankotsu and Kagome glanced over at the phone, sitting on the nightstand by her bed. It rung again, and again.

_What is wrong with me? _She wondered, standing up and approaching the phone as if it were a bomb. _Just answer the stupid phone._

She lifted the receiver from its cradle. "Hello?"

"Hey, babe," it was him. She would know that disguised voice anywhere.

She swallowed -- hard. "What do you want?"

"Well, I saw you weren't online and your shades are closed. The front door is locked, too. What's going on?" It grew quiet on the other end.

"Nothing." Was all she said.

"I saw you walking home with your cousin." He suddenly said, causing her stomach to lurch and her heart to drop to her feet. "He knows, doesn't he? About us, I mean."

She decided to make a joke out of what he said, even though there was nothing funny about the situation. "There is no 'us.'"

He chuckled lightly. "You're clever, Kagome. Always have been. But you knew what I was talking about. He knows, doesn't he?"

"No." She rasped. "He doesn't know." She said, making her voice harder so it wouldn't sound like she was lying. If she wanted out of this and planned on doing it, she had to do it right. "We're just doing homework and studying together."

"Fun." He said. Only he didn't sound very enthusiastic. "Anyone on your list today?"

Kagome shot a glance toward Bankotsu. From his expression, she knew that he knew what Death986 was talking about. "I don't know. I'll get back to you tomorrow."

"Good." From the sound of his voice, she figured he was smirking. She shuddered. "I'll talk to ya then, babe." There was a click on his end and the line went dead.

Kagome hung up the phone with a sigh. "That's probably the best phone conversation I've ever had with him." She had only had two, but still. One was enough.

"I'll stay the night," he said suddenly. "I'll call mom and tell her, then we can go get my stuff."

She nodded, grateful. She didn't care about anything else. Bankotsu was staying overnight and she felt safe.

She just didn't want tomorrow to come.

Note- There you go. I apologize for taking so long to update. We got out for summer a couple weeks ago but I've been with friends and I had writer's block. Anyway, I hope you all are still enjoying it greatly. I will try to update my other stories either today or really soon. Please stick with me. Also, please review! Thanks so much.


	12. Chapter 12

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Twelve

"Are you sure about him? I mean, he's a nice guy." Kagome looked at Bankotsu, her brown eyes full of uncertainty.

It was almost time for school and they were fully dressed, walking down the sidewalk, picking out people.

Bankotsu sighed sadly. "Well, I never liked him. And he doesn't have a girlfriend, so it's not like anyone will miss him much."

"That's mean!" Kagome said. "Hojo is a nice, respectable person. His family and all the girls who like him will miss him if we just have him killed."

Bankotsu shifted his bag to his other shoulder. "I know, Kagome, but you need someone -- and fast. If you don't have anyone, it could be Inuyasha that gets killed instead. Or Sango. Maybe even Miroku."

"Or even you," she whispered, her eyes now facing the ground. She sighed heavily as the school came into sight not far ahead of them. "You're right." It wasn't a moral thing for her to think or do, but she realized that it was better for Hojo to die instead of everyone else she loved even more -- even if Hojo's family would suffer immensely from his murder.

When they reached the school and Bankotsu had left her alone, Inuyasha caught her in the hallway by her locker. "Hey," he said apprehensively, looking around. "How are you?"

"I'm okay." She craned her neck to work in the code to her lock. "Bankotsu spent the night with me last night since mom didn't come home until around midnight or so." She opened her locker and pulled out the books for her first two classes -- Geometry and World Civics.

"That's good." He took her books from her so she could put her other books in her locker and close it. When she locked her locker, he handed them back to her. "Does he know?"

Kagome nodded.

"Oh." They made their way towards their homerooms, which were two classes away from one another. "Be careful. You don't want him to end up like Koga. By the way, you pick anybody?"

"Hojo," she said, her voice low. "I just feel really guilty."

He impetuously embraced her. "Don't," he said sternly, rubbing her back. "Everything will be fine. It's only until we can put a stop to him." She pulled away and looked up into his amber eyes. They were the most beautiful and stunning amber eyes she had ever seen.

She nodded. "All right." Before she could turn and go to her homeroom, he bent over and kissed her on the lips. When he pulled away, he smiled at her and went to his homeroom.

---

"He kissed you?" Sango asked, not bothering the hide her feelings in the sentence. She was walking home with Kagome today.

"Uh-huh," Kagome was halfway dazed.

"Hmm, it's about time." Sango said. She scuffed her shoes on the sidewalk. "He really likes you."

"How do you know?" Kagome asked, not in a mean way, either. "Did he tell you that himself?"

Sango shook her head and killed Kagome's hopes. "Miroku did. But that's a good sign since they are best friends."

"Yeah, I guess." Her house came into view and her stomach lurched. Her heart rate increased as she remembered that she was going home to set someone's death into motion.

"Hey, you want me to come over? We could do homework and watch a movie or something." Sango offered, smiling brightly. "Bankotsu told me how freaked you were about the whole thing."

Kagome shook her head slowly. "No. Thanks anyway. Mom will be home on time today. Besides, I don't feel like watching a movie." She began going up her driveway, leaving Sango on the sidewalk. "I'll try to call you later."

Sango's smile faded. "All right." Then she turned and went to her house a couple houses down.

Once inside, Kagome locked her door again and closed all of the shades. Then she went upstairs to her room, tossed her book bag on her bed, and got online. She received an instant message almost immediately after signing on.

**Death986**: Hello Kagome.

**Miko17**: Hey.

She really didn't feel like going through with this. It was horrible to think about how Hojo was going to be killed and how his entire family would weep over the loss of their young son.

**Death986**: Who's it going to be?

**Miko17**: Hojo.

The words on the screen blurred together after she sent it. She realized that she was crying. She was crying for Hojo. She was sobbing for his family, for his friends, and for herself.

**Death986**: So be it.

**DEATH986 HAS JUST LOGGED OFF.**

Kagome let a groan emanate from her lips. "I'm sorry, Hojo." She said in a hoarse whisper. "I'm so sorry, but I had to."

She signed off and collapsed onto her bed, kicking her backpack into the floor. Forget about homework. She didn't feel like doing it. She _couldn't_ do it with the guilt of a murder on her conscious. Instead, she let sleep overtake her and thought of how things were before she met Death986.

---

"He was a gifted boy--"

Kagome was watching the news. She was fully dressed and was about to leave, but couldn't bring herself to do so until she watched the report. Apparently, Hojo's mother had found him…Dead. She felt fresh tears spring up in her eyes.

"Oh, God," she said, not able to keep herself from crying. "I'm sorry, Hojo." She was sorry for his mother, too, for having to find her son murdered.

"The Police have issued that there will be no more school. There will be a city-wide curfew for eight every night. Failure to comply with these rules will result in a trip downtown to the Sheriff's office. Everyone must keep their doors and windows securely locked. If you see anything strange, call the police."

"It's about time!" Kagome cried. Finally, _finally, _a curfew was set. Finally, there was no school. Finally, these cops were doing their jobs!

She turned the television off and rose from her place on the couch and stretched. She had a day off to try and calm her frazzled nerves. No school, no anything. She had to call her mother and inform her of the curfew. She didn't know since she was at work. She went to the phone and extended her hand to lift it from its cradle.

It rang.

She jumped and held in a squeal. Now _that _was weird. But she brushed it off. What if it was her mother, calling in to check on her? Or maybe Sango? It could have been Miroku, asking her if they should come over. Heck, it could have even been Inuyasha, wanting to know if he could come over and they could kiss some more.

With this thought in mind, she answered with a bright, "Hello?"

"Hey, babe," that sickening, disguised voice rang in her ear. "Have you watched the news yet?"

"Y-Yeah," she stammered through numb lips. She felt light-headed. "I saw it."

"A day off from school," he continued, his voice making her angry, afraid, and sick at the same time. "A perfect day to commit multiple murders."

"No," she said automatically. The words flew from her mouth before she could control them. "Not today, okay? I mean, you could get caught, right?"

"Not when you're as clever as I am," he said. "But I'm touched that you're worried about the fact that I could get captured by the police."

"Don't flatter yourself," she growled. "I'm not worried one bit."

"Oh well. It's nice to fantasize." He laughed lightly. "Hojo wasn't the only one I killed last night."

Once again, Kagome found herself shrieking words before she could stop them, "What? Who else did you kill?"

He laughed. "You remember Koga's friends, don't you? Ginta and Hakkaku? Yeah, they can join their friend in hell."

Kagome felt nauseas. Everything began to spin in a sickening way, as if she had just stepped off the Scrambler at the amusement park. "Why?" She found herself asking softly as she tried to keep herself from throwing up. "Why them? They were innocent."

"Well, innocent people die every day," he said. "And besides, I was bored with just _one _murder. I needed something else to do. So I killed them. And let me tell you something, Kagome." He paused momentarily. "It was _fun._"

Kagome began crying again. She couldn't help it. Even though she didn't know Ginta and Hakkaku that well, they were nice people who didn't deserve to die so young -- just like all the other victims. She was trembling. This guy was sick -- he found it _fun _to kill innocent people. "You're sick. You hear me? You're totally _mental._"

"Everyone goes a little crazy sometimes," he said simply. "Even you, Kagome. Eventually, you'll go crazy."

"Why me?" She asked helplessly. "Why do you have to play this twisted little game with _me_?"

"You're so fun to play with, Kagome. Always have been." Was his answer.

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?" Kagome was suddenly interested.

"I have to go now," he said, sounded almost sad. "I'll call ya later, hon."

There was a click. Then a dial tone.

"I've always been fun to play with?" She murmured to herself. Then she remembered her conversation with him the day before.

"'You're clever, Kagome. Always have been.'" Is what he had said.

What in the world was going on? The only person she could think of that she had played with when she was younger was…

The phone slipped from her hands. Bankotsu.

"Oh, God," she said through numb lips. It felt as if her blood had frozen in her veins. Was Bankotsu the killer?  
"No, it can't be him. He's my closest cousin. He loves me too much. He's a good guy." She tried to will herself to believe it was true.

But somehow, she didn't believe it.

Note- Oh my! Maybe our little Banky isn't as innocent as we all assumed he was. Or is he? Let me know what you think!


	13. Chapter 13

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Thirteen

"What?" Inuyasha demanded, clearly shocked. "You mean that bastard killed Koga's friends along with Hojo?"

Kagome sniffled. "Yeah. That's what he said."

She hadn't told anyone of what she had concluded just an hour before Inuyasha called. After she had gotten off the phone with Death986, she sat and pondered about it for what seemed like an eternity. Bankotsu wasn't the person she was talking on the phone with. He couldn't be. He had been right across the room from her the other day while she talked on the phone. But today, no one had been there. It could have been him earlier. What about the other day? It had to be someone she had known for a while, since they seemed to have known her for a while. She had known Miroku for quite a long time.

The conclusion she had come to was this: There could be more than one person in on this whole thing. One could be doing the talking while the other one could be doing the killing. Even though she hated to think something like this, she decided that it could be Bankotsu and Miroku. Bankotsu could be doing the actual killing while Miroku could be doing the talking.

She didn't want to believe it -- especially when she wasn't even sure if it was true -- but it was all she had to go on.

Miroku had been acting a bit weird around her, showing her a great deal of affection despite the fact that he and Sango pretty much had a thing going. So she had every reason to suspect him, right? She had known him for a long time, and he had thought of her as a very clever person, and he had been acting weird, so there was plenty to give her reason to be mistrustful of him, wasn't there?

She wasn't so sure, so all she planned to do was keep it to herself and watch both Miroku and Bankotsu closely, while also keeping an eye out for any other hints.

"Damn him," Inuyasha growled. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she said, her voice shaking. But she didn't believe herself.

Inuyasha must have decided not to believe her, either, since he said, quickly, "I'm coming over. I'll bring Miroku and Sango, too. Do you want me to call Bankotsu?"

Kagome pondered for a moment. It would be a perfect opportunity to analyze her two suspects together, but then she had a horrific image pass through her mind: What if they killed Inuyasha and Sango right before her very eyes before turning their blood-thirsty gazes on her? So she instead settled on inviting just Miroku. "No, it's fine."

"All right. Just hang tight and we'll be there soon."

"Okay."

"Bye, Kagome."

She thought of the kiss they shared. "Bye, Inuyasha. Be careful."

The tone of his voice suggested to her that he was grinning. "Always." There was a click and then the dial tone greeted her. She placed the phone down into its cradle with a sigh.

"All right," she told herself sternly. "Don't think about who the killer -- or killers -- could be. Not while they are over. Just keep an eye on Miroku and everything will be fine. You don't want to let them in on your little conclusion yet. Wait until you have rock solid evidence."

It was sort of funny. She felt like a detective or something.

It took about six minutes total. She answered the front door when she heard them knock -- looking through the window to make sure it was them first, of course -- and they all took a seat somewhere in the living room. Miroku was on the couch, Sango was in the giant recliner by the window, and Inuyasha was on the two-seater love seat.

"You all right, Kagome?" Sango looked at her curiously, her eyes filled with concern.

"Inuyasha said you sounded upset," Miroku said.

Kagome smiled lightly. "I'm fine. I just hope it wasn't a problem for you guys to come."

"Oh, no, it wasn't." Sango said.

"Yeah, don't mention it." Inuyasha added.

"We're glad we can help you out." Miroku gave her a big grin.

"Especially with everything you're going through," Sango said woefully, looking down at the floor. Then she brought her gaze up to meet Kagome's. "You know. Everyone dying and stuff--"

"You mean," Kagome broke in, "Everyone dying because of me?"

"Well, Kagome, it's not your fault." Miroku said soothingly.

"Yes it is. _I _was the one who chose those victims. _Me. _Do you know how horrible that makes me feel?" Kagome was near tears, but she refused to cry. "It hurts to know that I am responsible for a city wide curfew. I am responsible for almost a dozen funerals! I am responsible for those families' suffering."

"You had no choice," Inuyasha said, stopping Kagome's rant. "He would have killed us, and I know you don't want to lose us."

Kagome looked from Sango's face, to Miroku's, then to Inuyasha's. She looked deep into his beautiful amber eyes and realized how right he was. She wouldn't know what to do if she lost them. She would die. That's it. She would simply lay down and die.

She sat beside of him on the love seat and took in a deep breath. She needed to calm down. She needed to get everything off her mind.

Almost as if sensing her thoughts, Sango asked, "Hey, guys, why don't we watch a movie or something?"

Miroku nodded in agreement. "Yeah. I could really use a comedy movie right now."

"Seriously," Inuyasha said from beside Kagome. "Not one of those chick-flicks or sappy romance movies, either."

Kagome couldn't help but laugh.

---

Bankotsu rolled over onto his back. He had been thinking about everything that had been going on for hours. He hadn't called anyone, or even gone outside. It was a dreary day outside; dark, cool, and damp. He hardly saw anyone on the streets from his second story window. He was home alone and had taken this time to ponder about all the possible people who could be the killer who was stalking his cousin.

"Damn, who could that bastard be?" He asked aloud. He sat up and glanced out the window. There was no one wandering around on the streets. He didn't blame them, either. He didn't want to go out there with a killer on the loose unless he absolutely had to.

He went over to his computer and signed on. There was no one on at all, which was surprising since he figured that they would all be on, talking about the killer and what not. It was also disappointing because he had hoped Kagome would be on so he could talk to her. Oh well. He would have to give her a call.

He stood up and started heading toward the phone to do just that when the sound of an arriving instant message stopped him in his tracks. He turned around curiously to see who it was.

**Death986**: Hello Bankotsu.

"Who the hell?" He asked, collapsing into his computer chair.

**Banryu357**: Who is this?

**Death986**: I know you know.

**Banryu357**: Know what? Who are you and what the hell are you talking about?

**Death986**: Don't play dumb, Bankotsu. I know you. And I know you know.

Bankotsu could feel chills going up and down his spine. It was hot in his room, so there was no explanation as to why he felt cold.

**Banryu357**: What is it that you think I know?

But he knew. He knew what it was.

**Death986**: Kagome told you. She shouldn't have. Now she has to pay.

**Banryu357**: Don't mess with her!

**Death986**: I told you that I knew you knew.

Damn. Bankotsu cursed himself. How could he have been so stupid?

**Banryu357**: Leave her alone.

**Death986**: Why? She told you and she wasn't allowed to. Her close friends are an exception because I made a mistake and let them in on it. But you, Bankotsu, are not an exception. So she has to pay.

**DEATH986 HAS LOGGED OFF.**

Bankotsu leaped from his chair as fast as he could, slipped on his tennis shoes, and raced out the door. He had to get there before that twisted fuck did. He just _had _to. He needed to warn Kagome and get her to safety. If her friends were there, too, then he would have to get them out of there, as well.

He raced down the street, his lungs burning from running so much, and realized with a sickening churn of his stomach that he was the only hope Kagome and her friends had of surviving. If he didn't make it in time, then they might die. This inspired him to run faster until he couldn't run anymore. He slowed down to rest for a moment. Her house was a little ways away.

After taking a little amount of time catching his breath, he raced on until he made it to her yard. And that's when he saw it: Something in the bushes.

"I got you now, you bastard," he said under his breath, running over to the bushes. He looked in them.

Nothing was there.

'Maybe I was seeing things,' he thought sheepishly, beginning to walk away, feeling a twinge of embarrassment. He headed toward the porch.

And that's when he felt something plunge into his mid back. He yelped in pain. That's when it was pull free from his body and plunged back in a little lower. He again yelled in pain. He felt it stab into two more times before he finally fell to the ground. Pain enveloped his entire upper body and nearly immobilized him. He could move his legs, but found it difficult to lift his arms. It too much to do so.

"You're okay," a deep voice said from behind him. "They're not major wounds, so don't worry about dying."

"Bastard," Bankotsu choked. "Aren't you going to kill me?"

"No," the voice said. "I'm not even going to kill Kagome. It was all a trap to lure you out here so I could do this."

Bankotsu started crawling toward the steps that were three feet away. He needed help before he lost consciousness. If that happened, no one would know he was out there and he might end up dying.

"It's a warning to you're little cousin," the voice growled, following him as he made it to the steps. He hauled himself up them and began crawling across the porch toward the door. "Tell her she better not screw up and tell anyone else or else they're dead for sure. Tell her I'm going to hunt someone down and kill them. I'm bored and she never told me who else was on her list. So let her know that if it ends up being someone close to her or someone else's heart, that she should feel guilty. It was her fault."

Bankotsu made it to the door, but couldn't lift himself up to reach the doorknob. He was too weak.

To his astonishment, the killer knocked for him. He looked up to see if he could catch a glimpse of his face, but found that he was wearing a mask -- a hockey mask if he wasn't mistaken -- and a ball cap pulled low over his head. He looked up at the door expectantly. Next thing he knew, the door opened and Kagome was there.

"Oh, God!" She screamed. "Bankotsu! Oh, my God! What happened?"

Bankotsu looked from his cousin to where the killer had been standing. He was gone.

"Sango! Call nine-one-one! Hurry! Please!" Kagome was shrieking. She wanted to touch him, but was too frightened of hurting him more.

"Kagome," Bankotsu rasped. "I was afraid he was…I thought he was coming to…"

All went black as he fell into unconsciousness.

Note- All righty then! That blows the theory of Bankotsu being the killer. But there's still Miroku, and let's not forget the all-famous Naraku. Also, who could be the killer's next target that he spoke of? Stay tuned for the next chapter to find out! Please review and let me know what you thought. Thanks a lot!


	14. Chapter 14

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Fourteen

"Will he be all right, doctor?" Kagome asked the tall doctor in front of her urgently. She, along with Sango, Miroku, and Inuyasha, had been in the waiting room for nearly two full hours, patiently waiting to hear about Bankotsu's condition.

The doctor looked troubled, causing Kagome to feel faint.

"Oh, no," she said, slapping a hand to her chest. "He won't, will he?"

"He'll be just fine," the doctor assured her, placing a hand on her shoulder to calm her. She dropped her hand to her side. "I am just curious as to how he was injured. This looks nothing like an accident. It was intentional. Either the person doing it wasn't very smart or they weren't intending to kill him."

"I'm not really sure how it happened," she said, looking back at her friends who were sitting in the uncomfortable chairs near the back of the waiting room. "He was coming to my house, I know that much. And I guess he was attacked."

The doctor nodded. "Well, then." He looked over something on his clipboard. "You may go in and see him. But I suggest that your friends go in one at a time, just to make sure it's not too much for him. He suffered four stab wounds to his back."

Kagome knew that too well. She had stared at the gaping holes for what seemed like forever before the EMS had arrived.

She followed him to Bankotsu's room where he instantly left the two alone, closing the door behind him. "Bankotsu?" She asked softly. His room was large and the bed was on the far side of the room. Her voice echoed when she spoke.

"Yeah?" He said weakly.

She raced up to his bed. "Are you all right?" She felt tears brim at her eyes.

He nodded. "I'm fine. They've got me all drugged up so I can't feel the pain. I bet you could drop a safe on my head and I wouldn't even notice." He laughed a bit. When he noticed her glossy eyes, he reached up and touched her face. "I'm all right. I promise. So don't cry, okay?"

She nodded and took his hand in hers. "Bankotsu," she took a deep breath. "What happened?"

"He sent me an IM," he began, suddenly looking serious. "He said he was coming after you, Kagome. I had to come and warn you. I had to get you somewhere safe. I had to do _something_. I mean, I wasn't going to sit around while my cousin got dissected or whatever. So I came after you. But he got me first."

Kagome didn't even try to prevent the tears from flowing down her cheeks. "Why didn't he kill you, though?" She asked, not even sure if he knew or not.

"He knows, Kagome," Bankotsu answered. "He knows that I know. He knows _me._ I don't know who he is, though. After he stabbed me, he told me he wasn't going to kill me. He told me it was just a warning to you, so you won't tell anyone else." He tightened his grip on her hand when he realized that she was about to pull away.

"This is all my fault," she sobbed.

"No," his voice was hard -- she'd never heard him talk in that kind of voice before. "It's not. He lured me into a trap, Kagome. I should've seen it coming, but I hadn't. He wouldn't kill you -- you're the one he's playing with. I should've realized that before I left. But I hadn't, so it's my fault."

When she shook her head to persist her strong disagreement, he sat up. "Don't!" She said quickly, placing a hand on his shoulder. She couldn't push him down, though. She didn't want to hurt him more. And even if she was sure it wouldn't hurt him, she wasn't strong enough to. "Don't move yet."

"It's my body," he growled. "I should know when I should and shouldn't move. I'll be fine sitting up." He adjusted the pillows behind him so he could prop himself up. Then he gazed at her with dark blue eyes. "Kagome, it's not your fault. Believe me. If I had taken time to think before I acted, I wouldn't be in this hospital right now."

"All right," she hurriedly wiped her tears away.

"Oh, yeah," he said surprisingly. "He told me he was hunting someone else down, since you didn't pick out anyone. He told me to tell you that if it was someone close to your heart or someone else's heart, that you should feel guilty; that it would be your fault."

Kagome pulled herself away from the bed and went to the window. The sun was beginning to set, leaving behind a fiery red and orange sky line that faded to purple the closer it got to the east. "I'm not worried about that right now," she said, not able to admire the beautiful and stunning sunset. Before all of the murders, she would have easily been able to enjoy all the colors. "I'll worry about it later, after we leave here."

It grew ominously quiet in that room, the only sounds audible were from the heart rate machine and the nurses buzzing out in the hallway. Kagome was trying to focus on the sunset, but found it immensely difficult and soon gave up and turned around to face Bankotsu.

He smiled at her. "What's this I hear about you and Inuyasha?"

"Huh?" Kagome felt her face heat up.

"You guys have a thing going, don't you?" He asked, grinning.

"No, not really." She said. Then she suddenly blurted, "But we kissed, and it's was only one kiss, but Sango thinks he really likes me and that it was about time that he kissed me and--"

"Kagome." Bankotsu said easily, stopping her from rambling nervously. "Do you like him?"

"Well…" her face turned even redder. "Yeah."

"All right, then." He smirked. "He'll ask you out eventually."

"But how do you know about it?" She inquired.

"He told me." He said simply, causing Kagome's mouth to drop open in shock. "I'm fine with it," he continued, "as long as he doesn't hurt my favorite cousin. Then I'll have to kick his ass."

Kagome had to laugh at that. But she really wanted to know if Inuyasha had said anything else about her. Just as she was about to ask, Bankotsu's parents burst in and raced over to him. "Bankotsu!" His mother cried, obviously glad that he was still alive. "Are you all right, dear?"

He nodded. "Fine, mom. Thanks to Kagome." He nodded in her direction.

His mother ran over to Kagome and embraced her tightly. "Oh, Kagome, we love you so much. Thank you!"

"What happened?" His father asked. "Was it…him?"

Bankotsu looked solemn. He nodded.

"It's a wonder you weren't killed right then!" His father said. His wife shushed him. "Just be glad he's alive!" She scolded.

Kagome took this time to leave. She wanted to leave them alone to talk with their son. Besides, there was a city wide curfew…thanks to her. She gave Bankotsu a gentle hug and departed. When she got back into the waiting room and her friends gave her a worried look, she said, "He's just fine. I think they'll release him either tomorrow or the day after."

Sango sighed in obvious relief. "Thank God."

"I think we should get going," Miroku said. "Remember? The curfew?"

After that was said, they went outside, hopped in Miroku's car, and left. He stopped by Sango's house first and dropped her off. He left after he made sure she got inside safely, waiting a few extra moments just in case she ran screaming from her home. He did the same with Kagome before finally dropping Inuyasha off.

"You gonna be okay alone, man?" Inuyasha asked him through the passenger window.

"I'll be fine. If I need help, your house is two houses away." Miroku pointed out with a grin.

"Okay. See ya round." Inuyasha waited until Miroku backed out of his driveway with a honk of his horn and a wave goodbye. Then he proceeded into his house.

"Yo, Sesshomaru!" He yelled. He looked at the clock. Seven fifty-six. Not late for the curfew. Ha! Take that you stinking cops. "I'm home, if you even care."

He heard a noise so faint, he was surprised he had caught it, even with his dog-like hearing. It sounded like someone calling his name. Well, more like _trying _to say his name.

"Inuyasha…"

He followed the call into the living room, where he saw spots of dark liquid. Bending over and placing his hand against the spot in the carpet, he realized it was still wet -- and warm. He sniffed the air. His stomach churned. Sesshomaru's blood. He followed the trail right into the kitchen that was adjoined to the living room. He nearly slipped on the liquid. "Sesshomaru?" He said tentatively.

"Inu…Inuyasha…in here." Sesshomaru sounded weak. _Very _weak.

Inuyasha raced toward the voice to find Sesshomaru by the fridge, bloody from head to toe. That wasn't it, either. There was a person standing over him. He was wearing all black -- that was stained with crimson -- and a hockey mask with a ball cap pulled down securely on his head. He had a large hunting knife in his hand. He had gloves on. "You bastard," he growled. "So you're the one who's been screwing with Kagome's head! You better stop or I'll fucking kill you!"

"I'm the one with the knife." The figure said. He was a man -- that Inuyasha could tell by his height and body build -- but he was obviously using something to change his voice.

Inuyasha opened a drawer beside of him and pulled out a large butcher knife -- not as big as the hunting knife, by any means, but it was still something -- and faced the killer…

…To find him gone.

Where the hell had he gone? He looked around near Sesshomaru and the table, just in case he was hiding, but shrieked in pain as the killer appeared behind him and stabbed him in the back with the knife. He pulled it free from his body, said, "That's just a warning, Inuyasha. Next time, I really will kill you," and disappeared. Inuyasha heard the front door close. He dropped his knife and went to the phone and called the first person that came to mind: Kagome.

"Hello?" She asked after two rings.

"Kagome?" His voice was coming out ragged due to the pain.

"Inuyasha? Are you okay?" She could obviously tell he was in agony. "Did…something happen?"

"You're damn right something happened," he said angrily. "That bastard was in my house, killing my brother! And then he turned on me!"

"Hang on," she said automatically. "I'm on my way."

"No," he found himself blurting. "Don't go out by yourself."

"He won't kill me," Kagome said gently. "I'm the one he's playing this game with. I'll be there in a minute." There was a click and the dial tone greeted him.

He turned to his brother, who was struggling to breathe. He was soaked in his own blood. His hair had turned from silver to red and his eyes were losing the glow they once had. "Sesshomaru…I'm sorry." He suddenly found out that he loved his brother more than he let on. "Just hang on, okay? We're getting some help."

He called nine-one-one and told them about his situation and that he needed medical help as soon as possible, then he gave them his address. He hung up and got to his knees beside his brother.

"Sesshomaru," he examined him and felt his heart sink. "I just want you to know that…" Why was it so difficult to tell him this? "That I don't hate you. I want you to make it through this, all right? Just hang on for a little longer. They're on their way."

Sesshomaru coughed. Blood spilled from his mouth. "I don't hate you, either."

"Shit, Sesshomaru!" Inuyasha felt a tingle in his nose, which usually meant one thing: he was crying. "You made me cry, damn it!" He looked around and found a towel by the dish drainer and placed it over the many stab wounds in his brother's back. Sesshomaru winced. "Hang on." He found himself saying -- _begging. _"Don't die. Please." _You're the only family I have left, _he wanted to add. Only, he didn't. He _couldn't. _He didn't want to talk about not having any family, especially not right then.

Kagome arrived not long after that. She turned on all the lights in the house, just in case there was someone lurking in the shadows, before coming to the kitchen. She didn't stay in there long. She _couldn't _stay in there long due to all the blood and Inuyasha's crying. Of course, he had tried to wipe the tears away and say he wasn't, but they still kept coming.

When the EMS and police arrived, they put DO NOT ENTER tape around the entire property. They took pictures of everything and did fingerprint testing. Inuyasha knew they wouldn't find anything, but didn't bother to tell them. Kagome offered to let him stay with her whenever he needed to and he said he would. He was going to ride with the ambulance first, to make sure his brother would be all right, and to get his injury checked out.

But as they loaded Sesshomaru into the back of the ambulance, Inuyasha studied his brother. He just knew he wasn't going to make it.

Note- (Gasp) Oh my! Poor Sesshomaru! Will he make it or will Inuyasha's gut feeling be right and he won't? Who else will this psycho attack? Just stay tuned and find out! Thanks for reading. Please review. Thanks.


	15. Chapter 15

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Fifteen

"Inuyasha," Miroku said as he stood beside his friend's hospital bed. He was only going to be there for a short time since his injury was a very minor one. They needed to see if everything checked out before they let him leave. "Are you sure you're all right?"

"I told you," Inuyasha said, glaring down at the bed sheets. "I'm fine."

"He doesn't mean your injury," Sango said. She was sitting across the room. "He means…" She trailed off. She couldn't say it. It was too hard for her. And, apparently, no one else could say it, either, since no one offered to finish her sentence. But he got the message, anyway. They could tell by the way he flinched and clenched a fist. He was, obviously, holding back tears -- tears filled with frustration, anger, sadness, regret, and fear.

"What," Kagome began after a while, decided not to linger on the subject, "exactly happened?"

Inuyasha sighed in exasperation. He had already been questioned by the cops, and now, Kagome was interrogating him. He brought his gaze up to meet hers and realized he couldn't stay mad at her. She looked so innocent and frightened. She appeared tired and frail -- but he knew that was from all of the things that had been happening. If none of this had occurred, she'd be the same old bouncy, hot-tempered Kagome she used to be. The Kagome he loved. "Miroku dropped me off. I waited until he left before I went in. When I got inside, I heard Sesshomaru calling my name. I went into the living room and found blood everywhere and followed it to the kitchen and found Sesshomaru. And the killer. When I took out a butcher knife, he ended up behind me and stabbed me and left." He shrugged, even though it hurt to do so. "End of story."

"Do you think he's going to attack again?" Miroku asked, looking at Kagome.

"Well, he always seems to be bored," Sango offered. "And when he's bored…you know what happens."

"He kills people," Kagome cleared up. "He does it for the heck of it, and says it's my fault for not choosing a victim."

"Well," Miroku looked at her, sympathy filling his violet gaze. "Yeah. Pretty much. But you know it's not your fault, right?"

Kagome nodded, her eyes glued to the tiled floor.

Miroku glanced at Sango, who shrugged as if to say, "What can you do? Let her believe what she wants."

Miroku sighed and looked out the window on his right.

That's when the doctor came in, a clipboard in his hands. "Inuyasha," he said, scanning the papers on the board. "Yes. Everything seems fine. You're free to leave."

"What about…" Inuyasha winced as he realized what he was about to ask. "Is Sesshomaru all right? Will he make it?"

The doctor sighed. "Sesshomaru suffered many critical wounds and lost a great deal of blood." He looked as if he felt pity for Inuyasha. He knew Inuyasha well, since he used to have to be shipped in often. He had been in many fights, as well as a few car accidents, and he had to stitch him up. "Sesshomaru is in a coma. We managed to stabilize him until we can find a blood donator." He examined his clip board. "I guess that donor would be you. If you feel up to it."

Inuyasha nodded. "I do."

"Very well. Let me go inform the nurse and we'll get everything set up for you." The doctor began walking out the door.

"Doctor," Inuyasha blurted. The doctor turned. "What kind of chance will Sesshomaru have? After I give blood, I mean."

"Inuyasha, I won't lie to you. I'm not giving him much hope now, and I don't think I will after you give your blood for him."

"So you're telling me," Inuyasha spat, "that I'd be giving my blood for nothing?"

"No, Inuyasha, don't be ridiculous!" The doctor exclaimed. "Your blood will help him a great deal. I just don't know how well. Your brother is far off; we were lucky we could stabilize him in the condition you found him in. He can go on living like this for a short while and eventually, he'll die. But if you give your blood, it might just save his life. I'm not very sure, but I'm hoping for the best. I'm saying that all we can do is try. For Sesshomaru's sake." He turned and walked out the door.

Inuyasha climbed out of the hospital bed and stretched, ignoring the searing pain in his back. He was going to show that bastard that Inuyasha was not one to trifle with.

Kagome rose to her feet quickly. "Are you sure you feel up to it? So soon?"

"The sooner, the better," he replied tonelessly.

Kagome nodded and it grew eerily silent in the room. No one spoke or even moved. They were all apparently lost in their own sea of thoughts, carelessly slipping away from reality to think things over in their heads. It was so quiet, in fact, that when the doctor opened the door, all of them ending up flinching, startled, before turning and looking at the doctor.

"All right, Inuyasha," he said. "We're ready for you. Follow us, please." He glanced around at the others in the room and said, "You all should leave. Do you have a ride?"

Miroku nodded. "Yeah. I brought my car."

"Good. Inuyasha, come this way." He walked out the door, followed by Miroku, Sango, Inuyasha, and Kagome. Miroku and Sango went to the right while Inuyasha headed for the left. Kagome stopped him by gently calling his name. He turned and she walked up to him, flung her arms around him, and said, "I'm so sorry about everything. I wish there was something I could do." She peered up at him.

He closed the space between them with a warm kiss. "You _have _done something for me, Kagome." He said when they pulled apart. "You've done plenty. But I have to go."

She nodded. "Call me when you're able to go home? My mom will come and get you."

"I think I should just stay over night," he said, wincing when he saw the fear appear in her eyes. She hated being alone, and he knew it. "You'll be fine. Trust me, okay? I'll give you a call and let you know how I'm doing, and how Sesshomaru is doing. I promise. Just go home and get some rest."

Kagome nodded, gave him a quick kiss; turned and hurriedly went after Sango and Miroku. They were standing in front of the elevator, patiently waiting for her. When she got to them, they pushed the button with the large, black one on it and when the big, metal doors slowly opened, they climbed in.

"Everything all right, Kagome?" Miroku asked, the worry evident in his voice.

"Yeah," she said softly. "Everything is fine."

"Is he coming to your house?" Sango asked tentatively. "I mean…He has nowhere else to go."

Kagome visibly tensed. It was horrible to hear it -- Inuyasha didn't have any family, other than Sesshomaru, who was in a coma. "He will. He's going to stay overnight here at the hospital, and then we can come get him tomorrow."

"It's so sad," Sango commented. She was standing behind Kagome in the cramped elevator as it made it sickeningly slow decent to the first floor. "Sesshomaru is all he has left, and there's a chance he won't make it."

Kagome winced. She wanted to turn and tell Sango to be quiet; she didn't want to hear it. But she managed to keep still, her mouth shut. She bit her lower lip gently.

"There's a chance that none of us will make it, Sango," Miroku pointed out glumly.

"Don't say that!" Sango said, appalled.

"It's true." Miroku protested.

"I know it is," Sango's voice grew soft.

"There's a possibility that this man will get tired of Kagome's delays and just slaughter us all -- Inuyasha, me, you, Bankotsu, and even Kagome." Miroku continued on as the elevator came to a halt. "We can't control him and we don't know where he'll strike next. I mean, look at Sesshomaru -- his life was nearly taken due to this man's unpredictability. Who's to say that you're not next, huh, Sango? And what about Inu--"

"Shut up!" Kagome shrieked. The door had come open and they had walked out, heading toward the large, double doors at the entrance. "Just shut up, all right?" Her voice began climbing a couple octaves. "You're blaming me, _again!_"

"Now, Kagome," Miroku began evenly. "I'm not blaming you--"

"Yes you are! You're saying that if I take any longer with this whole picking-people-out thing, then he'll go crazy and kill all of us!" She yelled, her eyes glossy with fresh tears.

Sango glanced around apprehensively. Luckily, there hadn't been anyone in there with them, and the receptionist who worked at the front desk had stepped out. "Kagome, please. At least wait until you get in the car to do all this yelling."

"No! I'm already done yelling! I'm done listening to you guys say it's my fault! I am so sick of you saying that this guy will attack at random and could kill you! I know that! Stop pointing out the obvious! It hurts to hear it!" She turned quickly and ran through the doors, leaving them behind.

"Should we go after her?" Sango asked softly.

"She probably ran to the car," Miroku replied, shaking his head slowly. "Maybe she needs a moment to cry and get everything out of her system."

"Do you think it really _was _us, making her upset like that?" Sango looked up into his eyes.

"I think it was everything. She saw Sesshomaru pretty much butchered. Inuyasha has nowhere to go, and no family, and it hurts her to hear it. She feels very bad for him…" He broke off with a sigh. "And let's not forget the picking-out-victims thing. That has also gotten uptight."

"Not to mention her cousin, Bankotsu." Sango added.

Miroku nodded. "Right." He checked his watch. It was late -- way past the city-wide curfew, but the police would understand, if they got pulled over. "I think we should get going." Sango began walking toward the doors, and Miroku followed.

Miroku took in a deep, refreshing lungful of air as they made their way across the parking lot. He was trailing along behind Sango, lost in his deep ocean of thoughts. 'What are we going to do about Death986?' He wondered, releasing his gulp of air as a quiet sigh. Glancing up, he saw the beautiful stars winking at him, almost flirtatiously. 'Is there any way we can escape him without getting more innocent people -- and ourselves -- killed? How much longer can Kagome bear this torture? Will Sesshomaru survive?' So many questions burned his mind, and he couldn't even answer one.

He wasn't sure how he'd heardSango's voice -- he was so immersed in his thoughts. In fact, he was thinking so deeply that he had nearly collided with one of the many light poles that was scattered throughout the parking lot. But when Sango ever so gently said his name, her voice shaking with fear, he impetuously snapped from his reverie. "Yes? What is it?"

Sango was standing beside his car, gaping at it in horror, as if someone had come and spray painted harsh words all over it. When he came up beside of her, he saw two things:

1. There was a note, wedged between the windshield and the windshield wipers.

2. Kagome wasn't there.

He glanced around the parking lot, nervously scanning it for any signs of Kagome while Sango lifted the note with trembling hands and read it.

"Miroku and Sango, how are you two this evening? It has been a trying day, hasn't it? What, with Bankotsu and Sesshomaru. And now, your precious Kagome has gone missing. Fear not," Sango swallowed -- hard -- before continuing in a voice that didn't sound like anything that might've belonged to a killer. "She is alive. I have not touched her. Instead, I am following her. You made her so upset in the hospital -- and yes, I was there, watching you three -- that she decided that riding in a car with you was too much and wanted to run straight home. Or, at least, that's what I assume she was thinking. But I promise that I won't harm her -- as long as you keep quiet about this and don't call the police. Just to let you know, I'm not alone in this act," Sango broke off when she noticed Miroku flinch. He turned to look at her with wide eyes before pulling himself away to resume scanning for Kagome. "And I'm watching you very carefully…through someone else's eyes. So be careful. And have a wonderful night."

"Miroku…" She crumbled the note up and tossed it across the parking lot. "Do you think she's all right? Should we go and tell Inuyasha?"

"No," Miroku said quickly. "She's fine and we shouldn't tell him. He's giving blood right now and has the weight of the world on his shoulders. Give him some time to think. Tell him tomorrow." He paused and gave her a weak smile that was meant to give her reassurance. "Get in the car and I'll take you home. Or, if you want, I'll stay at your house."

She nodded, impetuously agreeing, and got in the car. He copied her actions and then sped off into the night.

---

(Death's P.O.V.)

Kagome's scared and lonely form was truly wonderful to watch as she walked down the road, crying. I had been in the hospital while she had been arguing with her friends, and after she had made her dramatic departure, I made mine, out of eyesight of her pesky friends. No one had noticed me go in or out and Kagome hadn't saw me, following her in the safety of the shadows.

Not that I was afraid of the possibility of her discovering me. She was terrified of me, and her fear gave me the advantage. Around her, I was stronger. Around her, I was in charge. She was aware of all of this, too. She was too weak to put a stop to it. She was too afraid. If she would only relax and get it in her head that I wouldn't harm her, then maybe she could demolish all of the fear that left her halfway immobilized whenever we had a conversation with one another.

But she didn't. She hadn't. She wouldn't.

I enjoyed gazing at her as the fear overcame her. It was a thrill to see a woman frightened out of her mind. I loved antagonizing her to the point where she was about to lose her mind, and then leave her alone for a while, only to torment her more. It was truly exciting. And I planned on doing it now.

---

(Kagome's P.O.V.)

'They're wrong,' I thought angrily as I walked along the deserted highway. 'It wasn't my fault. I know I choose the victims and that it takes me a while to do it, but it's not like he's going to drive himself crazy out of sheer boredom and kill random people. And he isn't going to kill them. He _isn't_!'

I wasn't worried about cars, not with the city-wide curfew that was currently in effect. I was only worried about the police. I was silently praying that a cop car wouldn't pass through here and catch sight of me, wandering around alone, crying, looking very distraught and stressed. It was as I was idly worrying about this that I heard it. A slightly loud whisper, murmuring, "Kagome. Kagome."

I stopped dead in my tracks and, with a pounding heart, looked around. It was a dark and cool night, early fall. The road was totally empty of cars and other people. I was all alone on this black ribbon of highway.

"Kagome…"

The wind picked up, whipping my hair into my face. I brushed it back. 'It's probably the wind,' I told myself, finding it hard to believe. 'It's just the wind. Either that, or you're really stressed from everything and you're imaging it.'

I began walking again, thinking of what to tell my mom when I arrived home. I had to tell her about Bankotsu and his earlier accident -- no, it wasn't an accident. It was done intentionally, by the killer. I could tell my mom that, and leave out all the details like: I am the one who's been picking out victims and being threatened. I was pretty much aiding a murderer.

I also had to tell her about Inuyasha and his brother, Sesshomaru. I felt my heart sink at the very thought of Inuyasha standing over the coffin that was carrying the only family member he had left.

'It wont happen!' I told myself. 'Sesshomaru will be fine!'

'But then you'll have to stand over Inuyasha's coffin,' a voice said cryptically in the back of my mind. 'He's going to die. And it'll be all your fault.'

I shook my head. No. Never.

"Kagome…"

There it was again -- the whispers. I am losing my mind, I tell you. It's too much. I'm only fifteen, for crying out loud. It's very stressing to have a twisted, psychotic killer making demands and treats against you.

"Kagome…I'm watching you."

I stopped.

"You left your friends behind. You're afraid and frustrated. Aren't you?"

It was no longer a whisper. It was that same, chilling voice I'd grown so accustomed to hearing; expecting to hear it whenever I picked up the phone, whether it was him or not. It was disguised, I could tell. It was an irregular voice, deeper than a normal male's. But I knew.

"It's you, isn't it?" I had to ask, just to make sure I wasn't talking to a figment of my imagination or whatever. "You've been following me, right?" I spun in a circle, slowly and cautiously, searching.

He emerged from the shadows of the trees on my left, walking across the other side of the road and stopped directly in front of me. The wind picked up again, whipping my hair all around my face. I put a lock of it behind my ear so I could see clearly. It was a cloudy night and I couldn't make anything out.

"Kagome, so nice to talk to you again. In _person._" His voice chilled me, making my blood freeze in my veins. It was so deep and unnatural; very unnerving. "You don't look well."

"Believe me," I managed to spit out, ignoring my trembling body. My teeth were tempted to chatter from the cold, but I kept them still. "I wish I was feeling well."

The clouds moved then, letting the moonlight filter through. I could see he was examining me closely, grinning. He was wearing a hockey-like mask and a baseball cap. "I hope I haven't made you ill," he said, his sarcasm evident.

"Oh, no," I said, using sarcasm as well. Maybe I could hide my fear. "How could _you _make me ill?"

He took a step toward me. I flinched, my breath hitched in my throat. He took another step and I visibly tensed. My body was stiff with fear and I couldn't move, couldn't speak. I really wanted to do something to get away from him, especially when he brandished a large hunting knife. It was _huge. _And it appeared very, very sharp. He placed it at my throat, and I didn't dare move. What if I jerked the wrong way and it sliced my throat?

"You're easily scared, Kagome, which gives me the advantage. I am the one who is in charge whenever we have our little chats. _Me. _You know why? Because you're too afraid to do anything." He applied pressure to the knife, causing it to bite into my skin. "And you better not get any guts, or you'll regret it. Straighten up, Higurashi, or you'll pay for it. _After _your friends do, of course."

He pulled the knife away and I cringed when I felt the air sting the new cut. I almost gagged when I saw him wipe the blade of the knife off on the sleeve of his jacket, which was already soaked with crimson. When he noticed the direction of my horrified gaze, he said, "Sesshomaru's and Inuyasha's blood. I wear this jacket every time I kill someone. And then I wipe their blood on it."

"You're sick," I choked out, struggling to hold in my food from earlier at the hospital. "You know that? You're twisted. Psychotic."

He pondered this a minute. "Hmm, I like that. It has a nice ring to it."

I groaned, closing my eyes and ignoring the sick feeling of hot liquid slowly inching down my neck and into my shirt. I was fighting the urge to turn and run screaming in horror and instead, continued to stand there.

"Well, Kagome, it's late. You might want to get home before any cops find you and your mother worries too much." He looked down the street and for some reason, I assumed a cop was coming, so I turned to see for myself. Nothing. I spun back around to face Death, and found nothing in front of me but the light fog that had settled over the highway. I did a complete circle, scouring the area, and when I was sure he was gone, I wiped the blood away and began the long run home.

Note- There we go! I hope it was long enough and satisfying enough for all of you. It's two AM and I'm tired. I haven't gotten any sleep lately, so I'm hitting the sack. Please leave a review for me to read tomorrow and I will begin working on the next chapter ASAP! Thanks!


	16. Chapter 16

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Sixteen

Kagome made it to her porch, pausing to take in a deep lungful of air. She had ran all the way home, which was almost half a mile from where she had had a confrontation with Death. She wiped the rest of her blood away, using her sleeve to clear away the crimson that had been smeared. She pulled her jacket collar up high enough so her mom wouldn't notice the wound. She looked around once more to make sure _he _wasn't watching her before trying the doorknob. Locked. She couldn't help but smile. Her mom was doing the right thing by locking the door. She was keeping herself safe. She knocked.

"Who is it?" She heard her mother inquire softly. "Who's there?"

"It's me, mom," Kagome said, her voice shaking more than she intended.

The door swung open violently and Mrs. Higurashi pulled her daughter inside before closing it and locking it behind her. "Where have you been?" She demanded. She didn't seem angry at all. She was relieved. "I've been worried sick ever since I got home, honey."

"I'm sorry, mom," Kagome refused to cry, even though her voice was quavering. "I would have left a note, but I was in a rush. I would have called…but, I was busy."

Her mom examined her carefully before leading her over to the couch. She ran into the kitchen and fixed a glass of chocolate milk and brought it back to her daughter. She then sat down and said, "Tell me everything that happened today, dear."

And so Kagome did. She told her about how Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku had came over to watch movies and how they found Bankotsu on the porch, injured. She told her about Sesshomaru being in a coma and Inuyasha donating blood. "He's all he's got left, mom," she said, her voice breaking. "I told him he could stay here. Is that all right?"

"Oh, sweetheart," her mother embraced her tightly. "It's fine." She pulled back and ruffled her hair affectionately. "How did you get home?"

Kagome nearly tensed, but kept herself from doing so. Her mother would have noticed. "Miroku brought me home."

"I didn't hear a car," her mother said, looking thoughtful.

"He dropped me off at the sidewalk, not in the driveway." Kagome said, choosing her words carefully. Her mother would freak if she found out about her little 'chat' with Death, as well as her new injury. "And then he took Sango home."

"That was sweet of him," her mother gushed. She had always liked Miroku. "He's got manners," her mother would always say. "Such a gentleman."

"Yeah. It was," Kagome agreed sullenly. She finished her chocolate milk and gave the glass to her mother. "I don't really feel good. I'm going to bed. Night, mom." Her mother gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Night, dear."

Kagome ran up the stairs, two at a time, and closed her door. She sighed in relief. 'That was close,' she thought, turning her computer on, and leaving her bedroom light off. 'She almost saw it. She almost saw that cut.'

She signed on and checked her mail. Nothing, thank God. There were no threatening emails from Death, no sympathetic emails from people at school. She released a lungful of air.

**SLAYER258 HAS JUST SIGNED ON**

Kagome doubled clicked on the name and an instant message box appeared. She typed a message and hit enter.

**Miko17**: Hey.

**Slayer258**: Oh, God, Kagome, are you all right?

**Miko17**: Yeah, why?

**Slayer258**: He left us a note, Kagome. On Miroku's car.

**Miko17**: He did? What'd it say?

**Slayer258**: Something about following you and not hurting you. He said he wasn't alone in this. He was following you while someone else was watching us.

Kagome stared at the screen, transfixed by the words. She wanted to type something, but paused. Sango was already typing.

**Slayer258**: Why did you have to run out on us like that? You worried us to death!

**Miko17**: Sorry.

**Slayer258**: Are you crazy? There is a _curfew_ and if the cops catch you, you could be arrested or something! And there's a _murderer _on the loose!

**Miko17**: He didn't hurt me.

She winced when she realized what she had sent. She smacked herself in the head. "Stupid, stupid, stupid!" She cursed herself. "You're not supposed to tell her about it. Not right now!"

**Slayer258**: What do you mean, he didn't hurt you?

**Miko17**: Nothing.

**Slayer258**: Kagome…did you see him? Did you talk to him again?

**Miko17**: It was nothing, okay?

**Slayer258**: It's not nothing! What did he say? What'd he do?

**Miko17**: He just…messed with my head. He was trying to scare me.

**Slayer258**: How?

And just like that, there it was. How had he scared her? Put a large hunting knife to her throat, that's how. Kagome stared at the screen for a bit, struggling to come to a decision of what to tell her best friend.

**Miko17**: Put a knife to my throat.

**Slayer258**: Oh, my God, Kagome! Are you okay? Did he hurt you?

**Miko17**: It's just a small cut. I'm fine, really.

**Slayer258**: This guy is psycho!

**Miko17**: Tell me about it.

**Slayer258**: I wish I could come over. I don't want to be here. I'd rather be with you.

**Miko17**: Why? Is it because he won't kill me because I'm his target? Because I'm the one who's pulling the strings behind the murders? Because he _needs _me to play? _Wants _me to play?

**Slayer258**: No! Kagome, you've really got to get over this. I want to come over because you're my best friend and if we have to go through all of this, well…let's go through it together. I don't want to come just because he won't kill you. You have to understand that we're not using you to stay alive and we're not blaming you for those who aren't.

'She's right,' Kagome realized. All of this had gone to her head and made her -- she hated to say it -- insane. Every time someone mentioned something about it, she instantly jumped to the conclusion that they were blaming her for the deaths of nearly a dozen innocent people and using her to stay alive.

'I'm such a horrible person,' she said in her mind, covering her face with her hands. She took a deep cleansing breath and released it.

**Miko17**: I'm sorry, Sango.

**Slayer258**: It's all right. I know that all of this has gone to your head and stressed you out big time. All you need to do is relax. Inuyasha, Miroku, and I are only trying to stick by your side. We don't want to abandon you, especially now. And we're not blaming you. We know you had no choice.

**Miko17**: Actually, I _did _have a choice. Either let you guys die or other people.

**Slayer258**: Well, yes, I guess that's true. And you chose to protect us. We're grateful for that, Kagome. If you had chosen to keep everyone else alive, we'd be dead right now. And then after that, he probably would've kept asking you for victims. You wouldn't have escaped, Kagome. At least with this option, you have us to try and help you get away. We'll try to help you escape.

For a reason Kagome couldn't fathom, she felt tears well up at the corners of her eyes. She felt a suddenly stronger fondness for Sango and Miroku and Inuyasha. They were willing to risk their own lives to help her escape Death. Suddenly, everything seemed much brighter, as if the sun had rose in the horizon, bringing a fiery glow to the world which had once been bleak and dreary. 'We're going to get out of this _alive_,' her mind exclaimed joyously.

'But how are you going to do it?' A voice questioned in the back of her head.

And that was all it took to annihilate her exultant reverie. How? How were they going to get out? She had no clue.

**Miko17**: How?

It took a while for Sango to type a response and send it, which informed Kagome of the answer ahead of time: She didn't know, either. That's why she wasn't surprised when she saw her response. Her hope hadn't been shot down.

**Slayer258**: Well, I'm…I'm not really sure.

Kagome didn't type anything in reply.

**Slayer258**: I promise, Kagome. We _will _get out. When Inuyasha gets out of the hospital, we can come up with something. We can distract Death and someone can run to the police or something.

**Miko17**: It isn't just Death we should worry about. There are two people in on this sick scheme, one does the watching and talking while the other does the stalking and actual killing. At least…that's what I think.

**Slayer258**: Well, Kagome, _anything _is better than nothing. Maybe we can somehow get _both _of them in one spot and someone else can run to the cops.

**Miko17**: All right. But I don't feel like talking about it right now. Let's wait until Inuyasha comes here tomorrow and we can all discuss it. For now, though, I'm going to bed. Good night.

**Slayer258**: Good night, Kagome.

**MIKO17 HAS LOGGED OFF.**

(With Sango)

Sango would've pressed the subject of finding a way out on Kagome, but she felt sorry for her and decided to let her rest. They had had such a trying day, what with Bankotsu and then Sesshomaru and Inuyasha, and she knew Kagome was exhausted. Instead of trying to discuss things, she let her get off and ended up signing off herself. She left her computer on -- like always -- and changed into something to sleep in.

She flicked her bedroom light off and began walking across the room toward her bed.

As she was doing so, she passed by her window -- the shades were partially open -- and she could have sworn that she saw something. More like _someone. _

Her breath hitched in her throat and she slowly approached the window in order to get a closer look. She was a couple inches from the glass and she saw someone looking up into the window. She knew that couldn't see her -- right? -- and they were just trying to spy. But it seemed as if they were looking directly into her horrified gaze.

He was wearing a thick, camouflage coat, baggy black jeans, and a winter face mask that had holes for his eyes and mouth and nose. She was about to jerk away from the man outside when she caught sight of it: a huge hunting knife in his right hand. It gleamed ominously from the waning moonlight outside, sending chills up her spine. She quickly glanced to his left hand and saw a large ax that she knew was used to chop wood.

She looked up at his face, covered by the mask, and took in a deep breath. She wasn't sure of what she needed to do. Run to the phone? No, he'd come in and kill her and her family. It would have to be run and hide in her bed. She felt safe there.

Just as she was about to turn away, he waved the knife in front of his face and then used his index and middle fingers to point to his eyes and then at her with his index finger.

'I'm watching you.'

She involuntarily gasped and slapped a hand to her mouth. She could tell he was smirking now. He'd come to frighten her and he'd done a good job of it. He turned and left, disappearing in the fog that had settled in her backyard.

And Sango raced to her bed, jumped in, and curled under the covers.

(With Kagome)

She couldn't sleep. Not matter how many times she tossed and turned in an attempt to erase the images from her head, she couldn't get Sesshomaru out of her mind. He was bloody and dying, Inuyasha desperately trying to salvage whatever blood was left in his brother. Even after she drifted off to sleep a couple times, she saw him and tears ran down her cheeks.

This time, after awaking and wiping the salty substance from her face, she sat awake, trying to think of other things. She forced herself to be a normal teenage girl, if even for a few moments, and think of her future with Inuyasha. He liked her, sure, but would it go anywhere? Would they stay together for a long time and be the talk of the school? Would they someday get married?

Would he even _live _long enough to become her husband?

She growled in frustration and tossed a pillow into the floor. It hit the carpet with a soft _pat. _No matter what she did, she continued to unwillingly linger on the subject of the possibility of him dying -- of all her friends dying.

She rose to her feet to stretch and retrieve the pillow and glanced out the window. And there he was.

Death.

This time, she wasn't all that afraid of him. This she knew when she angrily opened the window and snarled down at him, "What the hell do you want?"

He laughed lightly. "To talk."

He was wearing that same old baseball cap and hockey mask and he was carrying the same old hunting knife. So why wasn't she afraid?

Because it was the same old, same old.

Had she become accustomed to him appearing without forewarning? Had she grown habituated with him pestering her about new victims? Was she used to him showing up just to scare her?

Yes, she was. Only this time, she wasn't afraid.

"There's nothing to talk about," she hissed. "So I suggest you leave."

He shook his head, reprimanding her. "Kagome, Kagome, Kagome. There's so much we need to talk about." He examined her closely. "And if I choose to stay, what will you do?"

"I might just come out there with a knife of my own." She threatened. She had a large one, too. Not as big as his, perhaps, but it was still big. And she could probably use it well.

"Now thing are getting interesting," he mused. "That's why I chose you. I knew that, eventually, you'd rebel against me somehow, and it would make things so much more fun." She could see his eyes through the hockey mask and they were glowing ominously. "You just don't know how to rebel properly."

"Killing you would be good enough, don't you think?" She spat.

"Yes, it would. But you forgot two things. One: my comrade would kill you for it, and two: you lack the power to do such a rash move." He replied.

"How would you know?" She just wanted him to leave. She wanted him out of her head, out of her life. She wasn't afraid of him. She was annoyed. Somehow, though, she knew that she'd be afraid of him again the next day.

"I know you, Kagome. Haven't we already had this discussion?"

"Give me another hint as to who you are." She pushed. She needed to know.

"Nice try, sweetheart, but not good enough." He fingered the blades of the knife gently so he wouldn't cut himself. "I'll be back tomorrow night. And I expect another victim by then or else I'm killing someone you care about greatly."

And then he turned and faded away into the foggy night air.

Note- Oh, there! Who is Kagome going to pick this time? And who are the killers? Ooh the suspense is killing you guys, isn't it? Good! Please review. Love you guys so much.


	17. Chapter 17

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading. Here it goes.

Escaping Death

Chapter Seventeen

Bankotsu had grown bored of the same hospital room. The white walls, the white tile flooring, the television across that room that was continuously interrupted with bouts of static. He knew it all. He had memorized it all -- the cracks in the ceiling, the way the door squeaked noisily when it was opened, the way the sun looked through the windows -- in a mere day and a half. And he was tired of it. He wanted to go home.

"You will be allowed to leave tomorrow," the doctor had said earlier that morning, after giving a speech about how his wounds should heal if they were taken care of properly.

"Tomorrow," he muttered, closing his eyes and willing himself to sleep. He didn't need it, of course, since he had been drugged up and slept peacefully for a straight nine hours. He just wanted to occupy himself with something in order to help time pass. And the constant reruns of _Family Feud _and _The Price Is Right _weren't helping in the least. The static had gotten on his nerves and he had been forced to cut the television off with a remote a nurse had given him. She had been cute, medium length black hair and a cheerful smile. Her eyes had a bluish tint to them and glowed with vitality.

"I need something to do," he growled to no one. He wasn't drugged up anymore, but his wounds didn't hurt very much.

His mother had called twice that day to check up on him, since she was detained at her job, and then the curfew worked its way into her schedule. Not that he minded -- his mother was sweet, but she treated him as if he were still eleven and played with Kagome on the playground.

He began to drift to sleep very slowly but was awakened by the annoying squeak of the door. When he looked up, startled, he was even more astonished to find his brothers in the doorway.

"Hey, man," Suikotsu said. "Mom told us what happened."

"Are you okay?" Jakotsu approached the bed slowly, looking very pale faced.

Bankotsu only managed to gape up at him.

"Oh, no, Suikotsu, I told you he wasn't okay. Look at him! He can't even speak!" Jakotsu said with a tremor in his voice.

Suikotsu came up beside his brother and said, "Bankotsu? You're all right, aren't you? Mom said you were."

Bankotsu managed to shake his disbelief away and say, "I'm fine," causing Jakotsu to sigh in evident relief. "But what are you doing here?"

"What?" Suikotsu asked, looking offended. "You don't want us here?"

Bankotsu shook his head, "No. No, it's not that. It's just that I never thought you guys would come and visit me in the hospital."

Suikotsu laughed. "You're our _brother. _That's what we do. We look out for each other." He ruffled Bankotsu's hair affectionately and took a seat in the chair across the room. Jakotsu took the one next to the bed.

"So what happened exactly?" Jakotsu inquired curiously. "Mom said that it was _him, _but we didn't believe her. So who was it?"

Bankotsu regarded Jakotsu with a serious expression. "It _was _him."

Jakotsu and Suikotsu exchanged wary glances.

"It seriously was." Bankotsu protested. "He was wearing a hockey mask and a baseball cap. He had a damn hunting knife."

Again, his two younger step-brothers exchanged glances. From the look on their faces, Bankotsu could tell they didn't believe him.

"Fine," he said. "Don't believe me."

"It's not that," Jakotsu insisted quickly. "It's just that…"

Bankotsu quirked an eyebrow, expectantly waiting for the rest of the sentence.

"Well, since there's already a kill on the loose," Suikotsu offered, "everyone who is twisted enough to hurt someone has the opportunity to do it. There could be more than one _him. _All the sick fuckers out there could have decided that since the police are occupied with what's-his-face, that they could go and kill or whatever."

Bankotsu pondered over this a moment. It was true.

"Did you hear about that guy?" Jakotsu asked. "What was him name? Sesshomaru?"

Bankotsu looked extremely interested. "Sesshomaru? What about him?"

"Well, I heard that someone was in his house, killing him. But his younger brother showed up and the guy left." Jakotsu explained.

"Now, he's in a coma here in this hospital and his brother was here all night donating blood. The doctor isn't sure he'll make it." Suikotsu looked grim faced.

"Oh," Bankotsu looked down at the bed sheets that were covering his body. "That's bad."

"Tell me about it," Suikotsu said in agreement. "Well, we've got to run. We'll come and see you sometime tomorrow when you get home." He rose to his feet and embraced Bankotsu, Jakotsu doing the same. And then they left.

---

"Inuyasha?" Kagome extended a hand to grasp the doorknob in a firm hold and open the door, but instantly thought better of it and wrenched her hand back. She stared at the hard wood of the spare bedroom door and heaved a heavy sigh. He'd been in there all morning, ever since he arrived and had been shown the bedroom. He hadn't even had breakfast.

She turned and sulked down the stairs to the kitchen. Her mother was off of work for the day and was cooking supper and humming pleasantly to herself.

Kagome collapsed into a chair that sat in front of the dinner table. "He still hasn't come out," she said, almost sounding like a small child whining.

"Give him time, dear." Her mother said gently. She began cutting something with a knife. "He's had a rough time and I'm sure he's only resting. Let him come out when he's ready to face everything."

"Mom, he hasn't had anything to eat." Kagome persisted.

"Well then," her mother adjusted the temperature on the stove. "If he's not out when we finish our food, you can take him a plate upstairs."

"All right." This sounded fair so Kagome left that subject alone. She busied herself with messing with the decorative flowers on the table. Impetuously, she randomly asked, "What if his brother dies? Can he stay here?"

Her mother stopped what she was doing and turned toward her daughter. "Kagome, of course he can. But we mustn't give up hope just yet. Just keep praying."

Kagome nodded and rested her head against the table with a sigh. It was so easy to say not to lose hope. Too bad it was harder to actually do it.

---

"Miroku, what should I do?" Sango asked, her face pale.

"I don't know, Sango," Miroku answered. He was playing his Playstation2, easily evading the other cars on the road in _Midnight Club 3. _

"I mean," she continued nervously, adjusted her weight on his bed so she was more comfortable as she faced the large television. "He was at my window and made an 'I'm watching you' sign with his fingers. What did I do? I haven't done anything." She slapped a hand to her chest with a gasp. "What if…I'm his next victim!"

"Don't be ridiculous," Miroku scolded, wincing as his car flipped. The game almost immediately repositioned it and he continued on with the race. "Only Kagome chooses the victims." His body jerked violently as he did a sharp turn.

"Well you know how he is," she said softly. "He gets bored easily and when he does, he chooses someone at random. Besides," she paused as she watched him do a giant jump over a river, "he said he wasn't alone in this."

Miroku's car didn't make it and landed in the river and he dropped the controller. "Well, still," he said uncomfortably. "I don't think he's coming after you. He's only doing it to scare you."

---

Kagome barely touched her food. She picked at it with her fork. And it wasn't because there was a troubled hanyou with problems in his life sitting beside her. Oh, no. It was because there _wasn't _a troubled hanyou with problems sitting beside her.

"Kagome? Aren't you going to eat, dear?" Her mother asked, peering at her curiously from across the table. Kagome caught the note of concern etched in her voice,

"I'll save it for later, mom. I'm not real hungry right now." She placed her plate in the microwave before fixing a separate dish. She then went upstairs and gingerly rapped on the door. When no one answered, she let herself in.

It was dark and quiet, almost unnerving, especially when she thought of Death lurking in the shadows, waiting for her. But she quelled those fears by thinking of Inuyasha.

She found the small lamp on the nightstand by the bed and flicked it on, illuminating the room in a small, warm orange glow. She placed the plate of food on the nightstand and looked at the bed. Inuyasha was sleeping on his right side, his back to her. She smiled and sat on the edge of the bed gently.

As she sat there, fingering the soft material of the pillowcases, she remembered that she had to tell Death the next victim. Her heart sank and she realized that she wasn't sure of who to pick. She figured she could get rid of all the mean people in school, but she really felt horrible about it. But she soon came to a decision and was about to leave when Inuyasha called her name and stopped her.

She turned.

"What are you doing in here?" He asked, curiously, not angrily.

"Oh, I brought some food for you," she replied, motioning to the still warm food on the nightstand. "You haven't eaten all day, so I figured you were hungry. But I'll leave you alone and let you rest." She turned to go.

"No!"

She stopped and whirled around.

"I mean, um, stay. I've rested enough." He said, sitting up and patting the mattress beside of him. She took a seat there and looked at him expectantly, as if she were waiting for him to begin a conversation. "So," he began, unsure of what to say. "Have you talked to Miroku and Sango today?"

"No," she said. "I talked to Sango online last night."

"Oh," he scratched the back of his head, looking sheepishly down at the floor. When he brought his gaze back up, he caught sight of a mark across her throat. It was scabbed over and didn't look too deep or wide. "Kagome," he said, "what's this?" He pointed to it, barely touching it, and she jerked away, turning in the opposite direction. "What is it?" He repeated, his voice harder this time.

"I ran into Death last night, okay?" She said, turning back to him. "I ran home from the hospital because of the conversation Miroku and Sango were having. And he followed me and we ended up talking."

"And he put a knife to your throat?" Inuyasha nearly screamed. Kagome shushed him. "Don't tell me to be quiet!" He said. "He could have kill--"

Kagome silenced him by covering his mouth with her hand. "He wouldn't kill me," she hissed. "He _needs _me."

Inuyasha wrenched her hand from his face. "Haven't you ever heard of an accident?"

"Yes," she answered. "But he's better than that to just let himself screw up. Just be quiet, okay? Mom doesn't know."

"Well she needs to know!" He said. He went to get up, but she shoved him back down with all her might.

"No!" She looked angry. Frustrated. "I don't want her to worry more than she already does. I don't want her _involved. _I didn't even want you guys in it."

Inuyasha opened his mouth to say something -- along the lines of _well, we ARE in it, so get over it _-- but stopped and snapped it back shut. Then he embraced her. She tensed, but soon relaxed and returned it wholeheartedly.

"I guess I'm just afraid," she whispered.

"Don't be," he said, rubbing her back gently. "I'm here with you."

She pulled her face away and looked up into his amber eyes. "I know."

He leaned down and closed the space between them by pressing his lips against hers gently. As they kissed, Kagome realized that he _was _there with her. She realized that, since he was there, she felt stronger, less afraid. She knew that, with Inuyasha by her side, they were going to stop Death.

Note- There! Sorry it's short. I will update ASAP! Please review.


	18. Chapter 18

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I hate to inform you all of this, but Broken Hearts is on hold for right now. I have lost interest in it, and I also have writer's block, but it will be back in progress before too long. I apologize sincerely to all of the fans of that story. Please bear with me. Thank you.

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading.

Escaping Death

Chapter Eighteen

Kagome looked over her shoulder apprehensively to make sure no one was there. After her little make-out session with Inuyasha, both he and her mother had gone to bed. If he hadn't been asleep, Kagome wouldn't have minded if he was there, reading over her shoulder as she told Death about the next person to kill. But it was her mother she was looking out for. She had gone this long without revealing to her that she was secretly aiding a killer.

**Miko17**: Hiten.

**Death986**: As you wish.

She lowered her head and released the lungful of air she had taken in just moments before sending the message. "I'm sorry." She said, as if Hiten and his family could hear her. Then she typed another message before he could have time to sign off.

**Miko17**: Why are you doing this?

**Death986**: I've told you. I love this game. And you're so fun to play with.

**Miko17**: But still. You could find someone _else _who is just as fun as I am.

**Death986**: What are you suggesting?

She could try it. She could tell him to ram that knife up into its proper place -- his ass. She could see what his response would be. Perhaps she would free herself from this hellish torture. She wouldn't mind if she said that she wanted him to leave her alone and use someone else and he did so, no strings attached. But what if his next "player" chose her as a victim? Or her friends? What if he told his next "player" that she was the one who'd had one of their friends killed and they chose her out of anger?

**Miko17**: Nothing.

**Death986**: You were implying that you want to be left alone, is that it?

**Miko17**: No.

**Death986**: Of course it is, Kagome. You can't hide it from me.

**Miko17**: Just shut up and go kill Hiten already. I don't feel like dealing with you tonight.

And it was true. She just wanted to crawl into her bed, roll up into a ball of misery and self-pity, and sleep. But the longer he talked about the truth of how she felt, but couldn't reveal, the longer she was going to be awake, sitting at her computer.

**Death986**: Now, now, Kagome. You've never told me to 'hurry up and kill someone.' You must be very upset about something. And I'm willing to bet that that something is me. Is it not?

**Miko17**: Just shut up already. I am so sick of you and your twisted game.

**MIKO17 HAS LOGGED OFF.**

'I hate him,' Kagome repeated in her mind over and over again as she changed into her pajamas. She turned to glare at her clock and the bold, red numbers read ten-thirty. 'God, it's so early. I'm not even tired.'

The phone rang. Kagome froze. She turned to look at it with wide, horrified eyes.

'If I don't get it, it'll wake Inuyasha and mom,' She realized. It rung again. She dove for it and picked it up on the third ring. "Hello?" Her voice was quivering more then she would've liked. If she was going to take charge with this Death guy, she was going to have to expel all the fear inside of her.

The voice on the other end, however, was shaking a lot more than hers. "Kagome?"

"Sango? What is it?"

"It's him, Kagome. He's after me." Her voice sounded as if it were wracking hysterically from sobs. "I'm next. I know I am."

"Whoa, slow down. What's going on?" Kagome was confused. Was Sango just flipping out due to the fact that she was alone -- other than her father and brother -- or did something actually happen to make her think this? "What do you mean?"

"He was here!" Sango shrieked into the phone. She yelled so loud, Kagome had to pull the receiver from her ear. Obviously, Sango didn't care about letting everyone in the neighborhood know about Death paying her a visit.

When it was safe to put the phone back to her ear, Kagome did so and asked, calmly, "When? What did he do?"

"He was outside my window last night. And he made a motion with his fingers." Sango hiccupped. "He said he's watching me, Kagome. I'm next. I know I am."

Kagome was at a loss for words. She could understand him lurking around Inuyasha's property, threatening him with that hunting knife and saying, "I'm watching you." Especially since he had just practically murdered his brother.

But Sango? Why Sango? As far as she was concerned, she was helpless and wasn't much of a threat. Maybe that was why. Maybe he liked messing with helpless girls' minds. But this didn't seem like the Death she was accustomed to. He like her because of her resilience, not her helplessness.

"What was he wearing?" Kagome impetuously found herself asking.

Sango sniffled. "What's it matter? I'm dead either way."

"Maybe not." Kagome replied. "What was he wearing?"

"A thick, camouflage coat, baggy jeans, and a winter mask." Sango described. "He had a hunting knife and an ax."

Kagome stiffened. Whoa. An ax? Since when had _that _gotten into the picture? "What time was this?"

"I don't know." Sango paused thoughtfully, sniffing again. "Right after you logged off."

Kagome tensed. 'All right,' she said to herself. 'It's not him. It had to have been his partner. They split up to scare the wits out of you two and it only worked on one of you.'

"Miroku doesn't believe me, Kagome," Sango rasped pitifully. "He said he was doing it to scare me."

"It's because he is." Kagome said. "That wasn't Death you saw, Sango. It was his partner. Death was here last night, at the same time his buddy was at your house. Death has no intention of killing either one of us. He knows that the only way to keep me playing is to keep you, Inuyasha, and Miroku alive."

"Are you sure?" Sango asked, the skepticism evident in her voice.

"I'm positive. I wouldn't tell you this if I wasn't." Kagome peeked out the windows. No sign of him. "Now go to bed and rest."

Instead of doing as Kagome had advised, Sango asked, her voice sounding somewhat distant, "What are we going to do, Kagome? How are we going to get away?"

Kagome was speechless. It was a question she hadn't prepared to have thrown at her. She hadn't thought about it, even though it had been at the front of her mind for so long, which was why she said what she said, "I don't know. But we'll figure it out. I promise. Now please go to bed and rest. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

Sango seemed somewhat satisfied and said, "Fine. Bye." And hung up. She hadn't said it in a mean way, or anything.

Kagome sighed and placed the phone back into its cradle. 'Poor Sango. I dragged her into this. Well, actually it was Death's fault for leaving that stupid note with Koga's body, but still. I feel so bad for her.'

She crawled into bed and, after lying there for a few moments, forgot about her sympathy for Sango and drifted off to sleep.

Note- There. Sorry it was so short…again. And this time it was also uneventful. But the next chapter or two should be full of surprises. Well, if everything goes the way I planned. So please leave a review. I love all of you!


	19. Chapter 19

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! It seems like you guys are enjoying it so far. That's great.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I hate to inform you all of this, but Broken Hearts is on hold for right now. I have lost interest in it, and I also have writer's block, but it will be back in progress before too long. I apologize sincerely to all of the fans of that story. Please bear with me. Thank you.

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading.

Escaping Death

Chapter Nineteen

Kagome kept fidgeting all throughout the morning news. She knew what was to come under the breaking news headline, but she tried to keep it hidden from her face. She had to act surprised so her mother wouldn't suspect a thing. She was sitting beside her on the couch, eating the breakfast she had prepared for herself before she ran off to work.

"Breaking News: Hiten Tamagachi was found dead early this morning in his home--"

Her mother placed her plate onto the table in front of them and murmured, "Oh my. The poor boy's family."

"Apparently, he was the only one awake at the time. When his younger brother, Manten, came downstairs, he found his brother by the front door, dead--"

Kagome covered her mouth and shot a side-glance at Inuyasha. He was just staring at the television with a fixed rage.

"We're taking you now, live, to the household of Hiten, where Manten is currently being interviewed."

The scenery changed from the nice news room to the house where Hiten and Manten lived.

"I was sleeping," Manten began. "And our dog came and woke me up. I knew that he wanted out, so I got up to let him out into the yard. But I knew Hiten was awake, and I wondered why he didn't let him out in the first place. And when I got to the door, I saw him…" Manten's body wracked with sobs and Kagome struggled to hold back the curse words she longed to release. "He was lying in front of the door, which was open, and he was bleeding everywhere." Manten could no longer speak as the tears overcame him and he turned from the camera.

The scenery once again changed, this time going back to the news room. "Hiten suffered many stab wounds to his chest and stomach area. No clues were left behind as to the identity of his killer. We will follow this story as long as we can and give you updates throughout the day."

Kagome's mother turned the television off as they began to discuss another topic. "That's just terrible." She commented, shaking her head woefully.

"Yeah, it is." Kagome was looking down at her hands that were in her lap. 'With these hands, I told Death to kill Hiten.' She turned and looked at Inuyasha. He was glaring out the window. He hadn't said a word to her in the presence of Ms. Higurashi. But he _had _come to Kagome's room when she had first awoken to say good morning.

"Well, dear, I'm off to slave away at work. Please be careful and keep everything locked up." Ms. Higurashi gave her daughter a kiss on the forehead, grabbed her belongings, and went to the door. "Bye Inuyasha." When he didn't respond, Ms. Higurashi looked at her daughter as if to say, 'What can you do?' Then, she left.

And Kagome let loose.

"What's wrong with you?" She demanded, jumping to her feet. She grabbed her mother's dirty dishes and took them into the kitchen, but she could still hear Inuyasha when he asked:

"What do you mean, 'what's wrong with me'?"

"You have not bothered to speak to my mother, even once, Inuyasha!" Kagome exclaimed. "She is the one who allowed you to practically live here." She began washing the dishes, angrily scrubbing at them. She was glaring down at the plates, but she wasn't actually seeing them, which caused her to continue scrubbing long after they were clean.

What Inuyasha said next, however, nearly made the dishes slip from her hands. "Well, maybe I should go back to my house!"

She sat the plates into the soapy sink, hurriedly dried her hands, and raced into the living room. He turned to regard her with a serious expression. "Are you crazy?" She wanted to know, her voice rising a couple octaves. "One: Your house is a crime scene. The police are staking it out and investigating. And two: There is a psychotic killer on the loose who, for reasons I don't understand, doesn't like you very much."

"Well," he began, rotating his left arm in circles in order to work some of the stiffness out of it. "I guess Miroku's will have to do."

"No!"

Inuyasha dropped his arm and looked at her curiously as she realized how loud she had screamed. "Why not?"

"I don't know." She said, running her fingers through her nappy hair. She hadn't brushed it yet. "I just don't really trust him."

For a reason he couldn't fathom, Inuyasha realized he was getting defensive over Miroku. "Why not?"

"Think about it, Inuyasha," she chided. "He's been acting weird lately. He's much more calm about this than we are."

"Different people have their own different ways with dealing with certain stuff," he retorted. "And who said I wasn't calm?"

Kagome sighed in frustration. "Nobody said you weren't _calm. _But you're angry. You keep glaring at the television whenever someone gets murdered." She paused and took a deep breath. "I know you hate him just as much as he hates you. And I know it's because of me."

Inuyasha looked sheepish. "And what makes you think that?"

Kagome just smiled. "Never mind." She turned and went back into the kitchen to finish the dishes.

Inuyasha followed and leaned against the wall next to the kitchen doorway. "You know," he began casually, "psycho is going to want another victim, right?"

Kagome nodded, her back still turned toward him. "Yep. I know."

"Do you have anyone yet?"

She hated to admit it, but for a moment there, Kagome had actually been about to say Hiten's brother Manten. It was cruel of her to almost say -- or even _think_ -- such a horrible thing. It was bad enough that Hiten had to be taken away, but how would his parents react if they lost their second son?

However, just when she was about to respond with a nonchalant, "Not yet," she paused in her actions of scrubbing the dishes. That's because she was hit with an idea. And idea so strange and bizarre that it might actually work.

Inuyasha must have noticed that she hadn't answered and that she had stopped washing the dishes, since he went, "Hey, you okay?" in a concerned manner.

"I'm fine." She responded.

"Good. I mean, you didn't answer my question. You just sort of spaced out." He said.

"I didn't space out," she said, rinsing the plate in her hands and putting it in the dish drainer and drying her hands. She turned to look at him. Her face was solemn. "I figured something out."

"And what," he wanted to know, "exactly, is that?"

"The next person I should tell him to kill." She answered.

"And who is that?" He asked.

"Me."

It took Inuyasha a moment to digest this bit of information. After he had, he exploded. "Hell no! You are _not _going to tell him to kill you!"

"Inuyasha," Kagome said with a half smile. "He won't kill me. He likes playing with me." She examined him for a moment. "And besides, you can't tell me what I am and am not going to do."

"This time I am!" He yelled.

She placed her hands on her hips and stuck out her chin defiantly. "Inuyasha. I know what I'm doing. Trust me."

"Kagome, you're crazy if you think I'm letting you go through with this." He ran his fingers through his hair. "I'm not. It's stupid!"

"How is it stupid," she demanded, her smile now gone, and her tone hard, "to save lives by preoccupying a killer with yourself when he won't even kill you?"

"Because," he replied, looking just as defiant. "How do you know he'll even take the bait? What if he realizes what you're trying to do and keeps bugging you about killing someone else?" He sighed. "What if he kills _me _just because you do this?"

"Don't give me that," she retorted. "You said you wouldn't let him kill you and that you weren't afraid of him."

"I'm _not _afraid of him!" Inuyasha impetuously cried viciously, grasping her upper arms in a vise-like grip. "I'm afraid of losing Miroku, or Sango…" He paused, wrapping his arms around her tightly and embracing her. "And I'm very afraid of losing you."

Kagome, who had stiffened stubbornly in his arms, relaxed and hugged him back. "You _won't _lose me. I promise. And Sango and Miroku will be fine, too. I'll make sure of that." She tightened her grip around him. "You just have to trust me and let me do what I think is right."

She could tell that Inuyasha was very reluctant to let her do such a thing. She knew that he was afraid -- she could see it in his amber eyes. And, as she was logging in on her computer, she noticed that he was shaking. Whether it was from anger or fear, she wasn't sure, and she wasn't going to ask. "Don't worry," she said softly. He was online. She double clicked on his screen name and an instant message box appeared. "It'll be all right."

**Miko17**: Hey.

**Death986**: Well this is a surprise.

**Miko17**: What?

**Death986**: You just came out and sent me a message first thing.

**Miko17**: Yeah, well, I guess I got used to your threats. You know? "I'll kill at random if you don't give me your next victim."

**Death986**: I see. So I take it that you've chosen someone, then?

**Miko17**: Yes.

**Death986**: And who would that someone be?

She shot a glance over her shoulder at Inuyasha. He was staring at the screen in disbelief, as if he couldn't believe she was going through with such a plan. Then, she turned back to the computer.

**Miko17**: Me.

Note- Oh boy! Do you guys think Kagome is right and that Death will not kill her? Or will he even come after her at all? Please let me know. Thanks.


	20. Chapter 20

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! I've been getting great reviews from you guys. I appreciate the feedback and I hope you all are appreciating the quick updates. But I'll be going back to school soon, so expect a slow down. I apologize for it beforehand. But thanks for reading and reviewing. You guys are awesome.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I hate to inform you all of this, but Broken Hearts is on hold for right now. I have lost interest in it, and I also have writer's block, but it will be back in progress before too long. I apologize sincerely to all of the fans of that story. Please bear with me. Thank you.

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading.

Escaping Death

Chapter Twenty

**Death986**: No.

Kagome's mouth dropped open in disbelief and she looked over at Inuyasha, who gave her a triumphant smirk. "I told you so," he said. "You should have known he wouldn't kill his only player." His eyes gleamed in the dull sunlight seeping in through her shades. "Besides," he folded his arms across his chest. "Isn't that what _you've _been telling me? That he won't kill you?"

Kagome narrowed her eyes at him as a warning to be quiet. She hated having her own words tossed back into her face. She also hated to have someone chant, "I told you so," too. "Well," she said defensively, "he could find another player."

"Kagome," Inuyasha regarded her calmly and modestly as he leaned against the wall beside her bedroom door. "Don't tell him that. He might actually come and kill you."

Kagome said nothing. Instead, she whirled around to face her computer.

**Miko17**: Why not?

**Death986**: One: You're a fun player. Two: I know what you're up to.

Kagome couldn't help but shiver at the second part. It was as if he were inside her head.

**Miko17**: I'm not up to anything.

**Death986**: Of course you are, Kagome. Your decisions have always had a hidden motive.

**Miko17**: Fine then. The only thing I'm up to is telling you I'm done with this ridiculous game. I'm _finished. _Find yourself a new player! And I mean it!

**Death986**: Are you sure about this? Because I'm getting off and if you haven't changed your mind by then, you'll probably end up getting your wish.

She could almost hear his voice, hissing those words at her. It chilled her straight to the bone, but she didn't waver. She had something she needed to do, and she was going to go through with it.

**Miko17**: Like I said, I'm done.

**DEATH986 HAS LOGGED OFF.**

Kagome sighed in evident relief. While she was relieved that he had signed off -- cutting off all contact with him, other than phone -- Inuyasha was obviously angry and worried.

"Are you nuts?" He demanded. "I told you _not _to tell him that!"

"Inuyasha," she turned around to look at him with serious brown eyes. "I had to. How else was he going to listen to me?"

"But you just signed your death wish!" He exclaimed heatedly.

"Didn't you read what he said?" Kagome logged off and pushed her computer chair in, sighing in exasperation. "He said I _probably _would."

Inuyasha ran a clawed hand through his hair in frustration. "My, God, Kagome! This guy is unpredictable! You'll never know where he strikes next!"

Flashbacks of the night when Kagome had stormed away from the hospital flooded her mind.

"There's a possibility that this man will get tired of Kagome's delays and just slaughter us all -- Inuyasha, me, you, Bankotsu, and even Kagome. We can't control him and we don't know where he'll strike next. I mean, look at Sesshomaru -- his life was nearly taken due to this man's unpredictability. Who's to say that you're not next, huh, Sango? And what about Inu--"

Miroku had been about to say Inuyasha. Miroku had been talking about the same thing that Inuyasha was talking about there, in Kagome's room: Death's unpredictability.

What if they were right? What if Inuyasha and Miroku knew what they were talking about? What if Death -- as well as his accomplice -- decided to go ahead and kill her and, since there was no one pulling the strings behind her friends, killed them too?

"Well," she managed to choke out after swallowing something hard. "We will just have to keep an eye open. We'll just have to get everyone together -- me, you, Sango, Miroku, and Bankotsu -- and maybe we'll be all right."

Even as she said this, the flashbacks of that night -- of her encounter with Death -- continued to invade her mind.

"You're easily scared, Kagome, which gives me the advantage. I am the one who is in charge whenever we have our little chats. _Me. _You know why? Because you're too afraid to do anything. And you better not get any guts, or you'll regret it. Straighten up, Higurashi, or you'll pay for it. _After _your friends do, of course." He had put pressure on the knife at her throat, giving her the cut she now had.

She unconsciously rubbed her neck gingerly with her right hand. 'Well, I've gotten guts,' she thought sullenly. 'I told him to kill me instead. So is he going to stay true to his word and kill my friends before me? Or will he go ahead and just kill us all and whoever is first, is first?'

Inuyasha, obviously beaten or tired of fighting, sat down on her bed. She sat down beside him. "Look," he said, "I'm just uptight."

"I understand. And I don't blame you. Especially since Kikyo and Sesshomaru--" She broke off and turned to examine him. She had said the wrong thing -- at least, the wrong names -- that much was clear from his expression. His ears were pinned back and he glared at the wall above the head of her bed. In order to prevent him from falling into a silent fit of rage, she said, quickly, "Look, I'm sorry--"

"Don't worry about it." He interrupted. "She's dead. And Sesshomaru is in a coma. I need to get over it."

"But…" She wasn't sure of the consequences of pointing this out, but she was willing to take her chances. "I was the one who told him to go after Kikyo. And if I had known about your brother, I would've done something to prevent it."

"I know." Was all he said in response.

Kagome would have dragged on the subject further under normal circumstances. This time, however, Inuyasha didn't look particularly happy to discuss the death of his ex-girlfriend and his brother being in a coma. The poor guy had it rough - and it was all pretty much all her fault.

Inuyasha was lost in his own sea of thoughts when Kagome randomly asked, her voice low, "Inuyasha, what are we going to do about him?"

"I honestly don't know, Kagome." He said slowly. "I guess we'll have to wait and see if he actually comes after you. And if he does, I'll be here. Maybe I can kill him."

"But remember," she pointed out, "he's not alone in this. You kill Death, and Death's partner can kill you."

Inuyasha smirked. "And then you can kill Death's partner." He laughed, causing Kagome to laugh as well.

'It's nice to see him laughing,' she thought. 'He's been so troubled lately, and I just made it worse by putting myself as a victim.'

She leaned against him as her fit of giggles dissipated. "I'm sorry about everything, Inuyasha."

He draped his left arm around her and brought her closer to him. "Don't worry about it. We'll deal with him if he shows up."

He turned his face down to look at her. She looked up at him.

The phone rang. They jumped and pulled apart.

"It's probably Sango," Kagome said sheepishly, getting to her feet and heading toward the phone. She lifted it to her ear. "Hello?"

"Kagome."

That was all he said: her name. And she thought she would faint right there in the middle of her bedroom. That's how she felt every time she heard that sickeningly disguised voice.

"What do you want?" She demanded. Inuyasha must have noticed how her voice quivered since he looked up at her curiously.

"You wanted me to find another player?" He asked.

She gulped and realized that she was trembling. "That's right. Why?"

"Because I have. Say hello." He said. Then there was some shuffling and she heard, "Kagome?"

She gasped. "Sango?"

"Kagome, help me, please." She sounded frightened. More than frightened. Terrified. "He's at my house--"

"All right, that's enough," she heard Death say and then he was back on the phone. "I'm doing exactly what you wanted, Kagome. I have a new player, and now all I have to do is kill you."

It grew quiet and Kagome felt her heart slip to her stomach. Then she heard Sango scream, "No, Kagome!" She heard the unmistakable sound of a slap and Death shouted, "Shut up!"

"Leave her alone!" She found herself yelling.

Death ignored her, however, and said, "It's such a shame, Kagome. You were doing so well in protecting yourself, your friends, and your family. Now it's going to go to waste because, since you made me angry, I'm going to kill all of you but Sango."

There was a click and the dial tone greeted her.

She dropped the phone back into its cradle.

"Kagome? That was him, wasn't it? What did he say? What's going on with Sango?" Inuyasha looked worried.

"We have to go," she said urgently, turning and slipping on her shoes before running to the front door. Inuyasha was on her heels and before they really realized it, they were racing down the street.

Once they got to Sango's, Kagome realized immediately that only Sango had been home at the time. Only now, she had some unwanted company. Kagome didn't care. She opened the door -- it was unlocked -- and raced inside before Inuyasha could take hold of her wrist and pull her back. It was quiet downstairs, informing her that there was a strong chance that Death and Sango were upstairs.

She crept into the kitchen and found the largest butcher knife she could and headed for the stairs. She heard Inuyasha creep into the house and that, for reasons she couldn't fathom, comforted her.

Once she was upstairs, she heard Sango sobbing and pleading for Death to leave her alone. 'Thanks, Sango,' she thought. 'Your crying is going to help me find him.'

The only problem was, she wasn't sure what she was going to do once she did so.

She finally came to the door of Sango's room and listened. They were in there, all right.

'Now what?' A voice hissed in the back of her mind. She reached out and clasped the doorknob in the sweaty palm of her right hand while firmly holding onto the knife in her left. She threw the door open and there he was, wearing the same hockey mask, baseball cap, and holding the same hunting knife. The only problem was that the hunting knife was pressed against Sango's throat.

"Let her go," she said slowly and calmly.

"Why, Kagome, how nice to see you again." He said in his deep voice. He obviously wasn't surprised that she had come to Sango's aid.

"Let her go," she repeated, more sternly than before.

"Why should I do that?" He asked, still holding Sango tightly by her hair as he kept the knife in front of her throat.

Kagome had stepped into the room and moved away from the door so that her back wasn't exposed to anyone in case he had his partner hidden there. She kept the knife in front of her where she, Sango, and Death could see it with perfect clarity. She glanced warily at Sango and saw that her face was stained with tears. "Just let her go," she said.

"But _why_?" He asked.

She wasn't sure why she said it. Perhaps it was due to Sango's fear-stricken face. Or maybe because her life, as well as Inuyasha's and Miroku's, was on the line. Or it was probably because she didn't want Sango to have to go through the same ordeal she had had to endure -- plucking out innocent people to kill unmercifully. It didn't matter the reason. She said what she said, which was:

"I'll come back and be the player. Just leave her alone."

Death seemed to like that idea for he released Sango, who collapsed onto her bed, and he approached Kagome, who ignored Sango's screams of, "Run, Kagome!"

Instead, she stood her ground, knife in hand, as Death crept closer and closer until he was inches from her face, his knife against her throat. She felt compelled to copy his actions with the knife she wielded, which cause him to smirk in satisfaction.

"I told you to straighten up, not quit." His hot breath tickled her cheek.

"Whatever," she said. It took a lot of guts, but she did it anyway. "Besides, you have to listen to me, not the opposite."

"On the contrary." He said, grabbing a fistful of her hair and pulling her closer. "I only listen to you when it comes to victims. Other than that, you have to listen to me and do what I tell you to. Or…" He pressed down on the knife, cutting open her old wound and possibly making it deeper and larger. "Take that as a warning."

She was about to give in to her fear, but prevented herself from doing so as his words rung in her head, over and over: "You're easily scared, Kagome, which gives me the advantage. I am the one who is in charge whenever we have our little chats. _Me. _You know why? Because you're too afraid to do anything. And you better not get any guts, or you'll regret it. Straighten up, Higurashi, or you'll pay for it. _After _your friends do, of course."

That's when she applied pressure to the knife at his throat and said, "No, you take _that _as a warning…to shut the hell up!" She shoved him off of her, virtually eluding the blade that would have cut her throat. She noticed with satisfaction that his neck was bleeding. "You only like me because of my rebellious behavior. _That's _why you play with me. Because I make it more interesting. I make it worth your while." She kept herself from smiling at the somewhat stunned expression on his face. "And that's what I'm doing -- spicing it up a bit."

After that, he wasn't taken aback anymore. He appeared to be smirking. "Well, then, Kagome. Do you still wish for me to kill you?"

Kagome ignored the warm blood oozing down her neck and collar bone. "You can try…some other time. And I expect you to leave my friends alone. Now get out of here before I actually try to kill you."

He tossed his head back and laughed. "You?" He asked when he was finished. "You kill me? I don't think so, babe. But I'll leave." He headed toward the door.

"And ignore Inuyasha on your way out." She commanded sternly, but it was too late. She wasn't sure who hadn't ignored who, but there was definitely a fight going on in the hallway. She heard Inuyasha cry out in pain and she raced to see what had happened.

Death rose to his feet, wiped the blood on the sleeve of his jacket -- as was his custom -- and said, "You should've told _him_ that." Then he turned and left.

"Inuyasha?" She collapsed by his side.

"I'm okay." He muttered. He only had a gash on his left arm.

"Did you attack him?" She demanded.

"What else was I supposed to do? Let him walk out of here, no strings attached?"

"Yes!"

Inuyasha looked taken aback. "Why?" He sniffed the air and turned toward her neck, "Kagome! You're bleeding!"

"I know." She said. "I got him, too. Don't worry."

"What is going on here?" Sango demanded, coming from her room. She was shaking terribly and her hair was an unkempt mess. She had managed to stop the tears, but it still didn't do any miracles for her appearance.

"Long story," Kagome answered. "Get you things together, leave a note, and come stay the night with me."

Sango had no objections to this whatsoever. She hurriedly gathered her belongings that she was going to need and she, Inuyasha, and Kagome went down the street to Kagome's house.

Note- There. I hope you are all satisfied. Please review and let me know what you think!


	21. Chapter 21

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! Thanks so much for all of the positive reviews. I appreciate them.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I apologize for the wait. I've been going out a lot during this summer and I ended up losing interest. I hope that you will be able to enjoy this chapter. I apologize if it is not all that good.

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading.

Escaping Death

Chapter Twenty-One

"So you told him to kill you?" Sango nearly shrieked, causing Kagome to shush her.

"Are you crazy?" Kagome demanded. "My mom is home--"

"The question is," Sango cut in hotly, "Are _you _crazy? Why did you do that?"

"Look, it doesn't matter." Kagome said, trying to dissuade the subject. "Just be quiet about it."

"No!" Sango was determined not to be deterred. "Since you told him that, he came after _me_!"

"I know, Sango. And believe me; I'm sorrier about that than anything else in the world. But you're here, with me and Inuyasha and my mother. You'll be safe." Kagome assured her.

"But what about my family?" Sango inquired angrily. "How do you know they'll be safe?"

Kagome shot a wary glance over at Inuyasha, who was glaring out the window. He hadn't said a word ever since he had gotten his wound on his left arm tended to. He simply dressed Kagome's injury and that was that. Ms. Higurashi had gotten home about an hour after that and now they all sat in Kagome's room, discussing the recent events that had transpired.

"That's right!" Sango said, not loud enough for Ms. Higurashi to overhear downstairs. "You _don't_ know! That's because this guy is unpredictable!"

Kagome sighed. 'Here we go again with this unpredictable stuff.'

"Kagome, what were you thinking?" Sango continued ranting. "You were _supposed _to keep going like normal until we figured out a way to trap this guy! But you just _had _to go and try something that you knew wasn't going to work! Way to go. Now we've lost his trust and have to gain it all over again!"

"Well, _excuse _me, Miss Priss!" Kagome jumped to her feet in indignation. "I didn't see _you _coming up with any brilliant plans while I was forced to pick out people for this psycho and his buddy to murder! Do you know how horrible it is? No! You would've found out if I hadn't told him I'd come back to him, but I spared you the torture! Now, more than likely, my life is on the line."

"And whose fault is that?" Sango demanded, also clambering to her feet. "Yours! _You _were the one who figured he wouldn't kill you and stupidly told him to kill you. So don't even say that any of this is my fault. I tried to tell you he was after me, but no! You, just like Miroku, didn't believe me." She turned toward Inuyasha, whose ears were pinned back and eyes focused on something outside. "I'm starting to think that the only one with the brains and street smarts around here is Inuyasha."

"Why?" Kagome asked, noticing that Inuyasha glanced back out of the corner of his eye curiously to see their expressions. "He _attacked _Death earlier and paid for it. He was lucky Death didn't kill him right then. And then there was that time at his house when Sesshomaru was attacked. He tried to fight Death and paid for it with a knife in his back!" Inuyasha's eyes were hooded by his silver bangs and then he turned to glower out the window. "So do you still think he is as street savvy as you once thought he was?"

Sango had her fists clenched at her sides. She obviously had nothing to say to this. Instead, she said, "I'm going home," and grabbed her duffle bag of belongings and began marching toward the door.

"Why?" Kagome folded her arms across her chest. "So you can be murdered?"

'I am being too harsh,' she told herself. 'Why am I being so mean all of a sudden?'

Sango came to a halt as Kagome's words hit home.

'I'm being mean so they won't make stupid mistakes and get themselves killed. I have to be tough so they'll learn.' She said in her mind.

Sango whirled around, stomped over to Kagome's bed, tossed her bag onto the floor at the foot of the bed, and sat on the bed. "No."

Kagome sighed and collapsed next to her. "Look, guys," she began. But what was she going to say? How frustrated she was about this mess? How scared she had actually been over at Sango's even though she had put on a strong front? How sad she was about all of the deaths? "I guess I'm just--"

The phone cut her off. She jumped up to answer it. "Hello?"

"Kagome? Is Sango there?" It was Miroku.

"Oh, hey. And yes, she is." Kagome noticed that Sango perked up at this. "You know, Miroku, we're kind of having a little get-together. We really need you to come."

"How long will this last?" He inquired.

"Well, all night. We were hoping you could stay all night over here." She answered.

"Sure. I'll be there in a few minutes." There was a click.

"All right," she said once she was off the phone. "Miroku is on his way." Inuyasha and Sango looked at her blankly. Kagome turned back toward the phone and punched in some numbers. The phone began ringing.

"Hello?"

"Bankotsu!" Kagome said happily. He sounded back to his regular self. "It's me, Kagome."

"Hey, Kagome. How's everything going?" He asked.

"Great," she lied. "What about there?"

"Fine," he answered. "I finally got my mom off my back about my injuries." He laughed.

"Listen," Kagome unconsciously fingered the bandage over her neck. "Can you come over tonight?"

"Sure. Is this some kind of sleep-over thing?"

"Something like that." She replied.

"I'll be there in a little bit. See you then." Click.

Kagome placed the phone in its cradle. "Now everyone will be here and we can figure out what to do. Will that make you happy, Sango? We're finally trying to come up with a plan."

Sango rolled her eyes and fell on her back on the bed. Kagome looked toward Inuyasha for some kind of praise for gathering everyone for a meeting, but she only found disappointment since he turned his back on her.

'Great job,' she told herself. 'In the heat of the argument, you said some pretty harsh stuff and now they're not too happy with you. What now?'

They could have at least told her that she had done a good thing by inviting everyone to her house. Sango could have offered a thank you of some sort for rescuing her from Death. Inuyasha could have also thanked her for commanding Death to leave him alone. But did they? No. Instead, they all sat in silence until Ms. Higurashi called upstairs that they had some visitors. Kagome yelled down to them that they could come right up.

Once they were all assembled in Kagome's room, Kagome said, "Okay, I hope that you guys know why you're really here."

Miroku and Bankotsu nodded. Sango and Inuyasha, however, did their level best to ignore her.

'Why are they doing this to me?' she wondered. 'I'm trying to prove to them that I can get them out of this since I was the one who got them into it in the first place.'

"Any ideas of what we can do to stop these guys?" She asked.

Only silence answered her. She sighed and looked down at the carpet of her floor. How were they possibly going to defeat Death at his own game if they couldn't even stick together and form a plan?

"Um," she said, hoping that maybe someone would answer her this time round. When no one did, however, she simply said, "All right. No ideas. Well I guess one of us can go to the cops tomorrow while the rest of us stay here. And maybe then we can put an end to the killings." She rose to her feet and walked out her bedroom door.

'Why do they have to be so difficult?' She wondered. 'I mean, they're all acting like Inuyasha.' She sighed as she entered the kitchen. Her mother was in her bedroom, preparing to go to sleep. Kagome didn't bother to flip the lights on. 'But I guess Bankotsu and Miroku really _don't _have any ideas.'

She opened the fridge and pulled out a drink, cracked the can open, and began drinking hurriedly. She consumed nearly half of the substance and sat the can on the counter. That's when she saw it. That frightening face that sent chills down her spine.

Only…it wasn't the same face. It was his partner, looking through the kitchen window, despite the fact that all the lights were off. It was almost as if he could sense she was there, and it seemed as if his eyes were focused on her.

She stiffened, took in a lungful of air, and went to the front door.

'What am I _doing_?' She thought. 'Am I going crazy? I shouldn't let him in!'

She couldn't stop herself from opening the door, however, and stepping outside onto the porch. The cool night air greeted her and she took in a lungful of it, savoring its freshness while she could. Then she turned her attention towards Death's partner. "What do you want?"

"A little visit." He said. His voice, just as Death's had been, was disguised.

"Well, you're not welcome here." She spat. Next thing she knew, he raced forward, seized her wrists in an iron-like grip with his left hand, and pressed a knife to her throat with his right.

"Perhaps you should reconsider." He snarled. "Unlike my partner, I won't hesitate to kill you. I despise women…Especially women with no manners."

Kagome felt herself stumble backwards, but was caught by the railing of the porch. The knife felt as if it were biting down deeper and deeper into her flesh, but she knew that she was imagining it. If it had been, she would've screamed like she hadn't screamed before. In fact, she opened her mouth to do just that -- she had four other people inside who would be able to take this guy out -- but Death's partner slapped his left hand over her mouth before she could do so.

"No, no, no," he said disapprovingly. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

Kagome was satisfied that her hands had been released, but wasn't thrilled about having a knife at her throat and a hand over her mouth.

"Who's next on your list?" He demanded, releasing her altogether. "You better choose this time, or you'll suffer the consequences. Death and I are growing bored and tired of your antics."

Kagome felt her breath coming out raggedly. What now? Who should she kill? She sighed and pressed her back against the screen door. "Hmm," she said, pretending to think. "I've got it."

Death's partner raised his eyebrows in interest. When she didn't say anything further, he furrowed his eyebrows in anger. "Well?"

"Me." She opened the screen door and, since he was standing directly in front of it, it collided with his head hard, causing him to drop the knife and stumble backwards. She hurriedly picked up the knife and raced into the house, locking the door frantically.

She heard a rustling outside and looked through the window to see Death appearing from around the side of the house to check on his partner, who was still regaining his composure. They both glared at the window -- most likely at _her_ -- in outrage before turning and walking across her lawn and disappearing in the fog that had appeared during her altercation with Death's partner.

She sighed and glanced down at the large hunting knife in her hand. This is what they used to kill people. Sure, Death had one of his own, but they had to have used this one. And this knife had been pressed against her neck only minutes earlier. She gingerly fingered the gash on her neck -- still surprisingly bandaged -- and went over to the couch.

She stuck the knife on the coffee table beside the couch before curling up on it and going to sleep.

Note- There you go. How was it? Again, I apologize for the wait. I hope you enjoyed it.


	22. Chapter 22

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! Thanks so much for all of the positive reviews. I appreciate them.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading.

Escaping Death

Chapter Twenty-Two

"Oh, my God!" A female voice uttered in horror. "It's huge! And bloody! I mean look at it -- Miroku, don't touch it!"

Kagome heard the voice and knew very well that it was Sango, but she felt as if all the energy that had ever existed in her body had dissipated suddenly. She felt cramped and uncomfortable. Where had she fallen asleep, anyway? It sure didn't feel like her bed.

"Is she all right?" This time, it was Bankotsu speaking. "I mean, is she cut anywhere?"

She realized that they were talking about her. And the truth was, she felt numb just about everywhere and wasn't sure if she had sustained any injuries earlier or not.

"I don't think so," Inuyasha said. "Wake her up, just in case."

"We need to find out what happened," Miroku stated, as if the others hadn't already know that.

That's when she felt the fingers. Firm, yet gentle fingers that coiled around her arm ever so slowly and gingerly. She felt the talon-like claws, even through the material of her t-shirt and she knew that it was Inuyasha who was lifting her up. His voice flowed into her ear slowly, almost like a chant, putting her into a peaceful trance. "Kagome? Wake up." He gave her a gentle shake, snapping her out of her reverie.

She pushed her eyes open slowly, and it took much more effort than normal. She felt even more drained that she had before. "Huh?"

All of them -- Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango, and Bankotsu -- were staring at her intently, in a concerned manner. It felt strange to have them staring at her all at once.

"Are you all right?" Sango asked.

"What happened?" Bankotsu glanced from the knife and then back to her, causing Kagome to do the same.

The memories slowly came flooding back to her as she sat there, Inuyasha's hand gently gripping her upper arm. She unconsciously touched her throat as the memory of the way the blade felt against it returned. The way he snarled those words at her, "_Unlike my partner, I won't hesitate to kill you."_

"He came," she whispered, almost as if she were in a trance. "Only, it was his partner. He's worse than Death. He'll actually kill me." She sighed and glanced at Inuyasha as his hand fell from her arm. "And I told him to."

Inuyasha opened his mouth to respond to this but she lifted a hand and shushed him. "Don't," she commanded quietly, but sternly. "I know it was stupid. But I know what I'm doing." She glanced down at the hunting knife that lay on the coffee table beside the couch, its blade gleaming menacingly in the moonlight that was seeping into the living room window.

"Are you sure?" Sango asked gently, staring at the knife with wide eyes. Kagome could hear the tremor in her voice.

"Positive." Kagome rose to her feet, curing herself for having slept on the couch and giving herself a major muscle ache, and went upstairs. Once she was in her room, she turned her computer on and listened to it's steady hum as it started up. Once before, it had been a comforting sound. Now, however, it only reminded her of the pain she had caused. The death she had caused.

Once it was running, Kagome signed on to the Internet and waited. That's all. She had no emails and no instant messages from any psychotic killers. As the time dragged on, it because apparent that she wouldn't have any contact with him for the night so she opened an email box and addressed it to him before typing her message.

_You want someone to kill? Fine. I know that you're planning on taking me out, but where's the fun in that? So I'll tell you what: you want someone else to kill, come to the school tomorrow at 11:00 pm. And since there are two of you, I can bring my friends. We'll meet in the Biology room on the second floor. Be there._

It sounded much to bossy coming from her, but she didn't care. She was tired of this ridiculous and dangerous game of bloody murder. She was determined to put a stop to it. And in her opinion, it was about time she had done something.

---

"So we're going to meet them tomorrow night at the school?" Sango asked, clearly alarmed. "Are you _crazy_?"

Kagome stared at her best friend blankly from across the kitchen table where they were having their discussion. "Do I look crazy?"

It grew quiet as Miroku, Inuyasha, and Bankotsu all took a moment to peek at her under her bangs to see if she was. She sighed in exasperation and said, hotly, "I'm _not _crazy. I just know what I'm doing. If your guys don't like it, I'm sorry. If you want to live then you have to stick with me on this." Normally, Kagome would have winced on the inside at her words. This time, however, she portrayed no emotion whatsoever. That's how determined she was to make it out of the situation alive.

"But what are we going to do once we meet up with them?" Bankotsu asked.

"Yeah." Miroku chimed in. "They could kill us if they wanted to. I mean…what if they bring more people with them this time?"

Kagome quirked an eyebrow at this suggestion. "What do you mean?"

Miroku shrugged. "I don't know. I'm just saying. They could have friends, too."

"He has a point," Inuyasha agreed.

"So I say we don't go," Sango said.

"And I say we do." Kagome shot back.

"Don't." Sango protested.

"Do." Kagome glowered at Sango with so much anger in her eyes that it made Sango hesitate to respond. Kagome hissed, "You can either come with us and have a good chance to live or you can stay here and possibly get us all killed. Your choice." She folded her arms across her chest expectantly, daring for Sango to once again defy her.

She wasn't abusing the 'power' that she had -- if you could even call it such a thing. She was simply trying to keep them together and keep them alive.

It grew ominously quiet as Inuyasha, Miroku, Bankotsu, and Sango gaped at Kagome. This wasn't her. She had never been this hard or cold. She had never been this tough or cruel. What was wrong with her?

"Now," Kagome said after a few minutes. "I don't really know what we're going to do once we meet up with them. It's one of those 'we'll have to see' situations. But what I was planning on was killing them and ending the nightmare for good."

Sango opened her mouth to shout a response but an indignant stare from Kagome caused her to snap her mouth shut.

"Just keep this in mind, all right? We're going around 11, if they want us to meet them. And if we go, be alert at all times. Now get some sleep. Good night." She rose from the table and headed up to her room, ignoring the feeling of eyes on her as she did so.

Once she was in her room, she closed the door and silent tears made their way down her face. She hated being so tough on them, but it had to be done in order to keep them alert and alive.

Determined to get through this and be strong, she angrily wiped the tears away and glanced at the computer. She had left it on ever since she sent the email and she saw that she had a new email. She reluctantly sat at her computer and opened it.

_You're getting bossy, Higurashi. And after the stunt you pulled with my partner, you're digging your grave deeper and deeper. However, this seems interesting. You're willing to go out late at night to meet us at the school? Very well. I am allowing you to bring your friends at 11:00. I cannot afford having one of you stay behind and call the police. We will meet in the library on the first floor, instead. _

_I'm not letting you call all the shots._

_And if I find out that one of your friends stayed behind, I'll send my partner out to kill them and your mother. Then it's your turn. So decide wisely. _

After reading that, Kagome didn't feel as guilty as she had before for being so harsh to Sango. If she hadn't Sango would've stayed behind and gotten everyone killed.

Sighing, she signed off and changed into night clothes. The next day was going to be the most interesting day of her life.

And probably the most frightening.

Note- There! How was it? I apologize for taking so long, but I've been so stressed out with School work and my new boyfriend and whatnot. I hope you all enjoyed it. And just to let you know, this story is going to end within the next chapter or two. So hang on to your seats! There's just might be a sequel. Anyways, thanks for reading and please review!


	23. Chapter 23

Escaping Death

Note- Hey! Thanks so much for all of the positive reviews. I appreciate them.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha.

Summary- Kagome is an average girl. But after a strange online conversation, a psychotic killer wants HER to choose his victims. She can't escape, not without sacrificing everyone she loves. So what can she do?

I hope you all enjoy. Please review and thanks for reading.

Escaping Death

Chapter Twenty-Three

The school was pretty frightening during the day, due to the fact that it was a place that not many people wished to go. At night, however, it was a massively intimidating structure, especially when there were two killers inside. That fact nearly caused Kagome's heart to stop beating and she only dared to imagine how Sango was feeling. She knew that Sango was probably the most frightened of all while Inuyasha bore the most hatred.

'You can handle this,' she told herself as she stood, staring up at the large windows, the chilly air whipping her hair into her face. 'That's why you decided to do this in the first place.'

"I can't believe that we're actually doing this." Sango murmured behind Kagome. She, too, was gaping up at the school.

Inuyasha took a place beside Kagome, took her hand in his, and said in reply to Sango, "Well, we are." He looked down at Kagome and gave her his cute, boyish grin and said. "We'll be fine. Now let's go, and be careful." At that, he led them all inside.

The only way they had gotten in was because Bankotsu was skilled at picking locks.

Once inside, they all headed toward the Library silently. It was ominously quiet, and Kagome did not like it one bit. Sango was keeping herself hidden between Miroku and Bankotsu. They couldn't really blame her. They all felt some type of fear deep within them, especially since they knew that tonight was the ultimate test of themselves. It was especially bad since Kagome had no plan. All she had planned was to kill, just like the killers who had been haunting them.

Miroku stumbled once after stepping on a loose shoe string, but Sango kept him from toppling over by grabbing his left arm. He smiled sheepishly before quickly squatting down and tying his shoe tightly. While doing so, he noticed his other shoe was untied. After tying that one, he glanced up and saw that his friends had disappeared. He didn't dare call out due to sheer terror. Instead, he got to his feet slowly and began walking down the hall. They had rounded one of two corners and he wasn't sure which. He didn't want to run because his shoes would make loud thudding noises and alert anyone of his presence. Once he reached the turning point, he looked from left, to right, and left again.

Sighing, and ignoring the pulsing of his heart, he went right. He was sure he would stumble across them eventually.

---

Sango felt the noticeable absence of Miroku behind her and stopped. She whirled around, her heart leaping into her throat, to find that he _was _gone. "Guys," she whispered, barely audible over the resonating silence. "Hey."

Inuyasha's sensitive hearing caught Sango's light words and he stopped, causing Kagome to stop since he was still holding her hand. Bankotsu paused as well and all three of them turned to see what was wrong.

"Miroku…" Sango said, beginning to tremble. "He was just here, he stopped to tie his shoe. And then…I turned around and he -- he's gone!"

Kagome knew it was only a matter of time before Sango burst into hysterics. And a part of her told her that it was only a matter of time before they heard Miroku's painful screams echoing through the hall. She brushed it off and went to Sango's side instead. "It's okay," she reassured her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "I'm sure he's just tangled up in his shoe strings or something." Her lame joke fell on deaf ears as the lights flickered on, blinding them.

Startled, Sango exploded from Kagome's grasp with a pitiful scream, and raced down the hallway. Kagome watched her leave, urging herself to move, but she couldn't. She noticed that Bankotsu and Inuyasha were looking at the lights in bewilderment, both confused as to how and why they suddenly sprang to life.

Kagome's mind tuned to auto-pilot and she barely registered the fact that she said, "We need to go," and began running to a random direction; any direction to get away from the hallway with the lights. She heard Inuyasha and Bankotsu shuffling to catch up to her and she noticed that the hallway was growing dimmer and dimmer.

Impetuously, the lights above her came on, causing her to run faster, like a startled fawn. She was determined to lose the trails of lights, but she wasn't planning on losing Bankotsu in the process, which is what she did. She made it to a hall that was enveloped in pitch black and she fell against a wall. Inuyasha found her a couple of moments later, and they stood in silence for a bit.

"Where's Bankotsu?" Kagome asked.

"I don't know," Inuyasha said. "I thought he was right behind me. But then again, you were running pretty fast, so we might have lost him."

Kagome's heart began racing. "Oh, God," she said slowly. "It's all my fault. We lost them. What if they get killed?"

Inuyasha was embracing her in a second, stroking her hair and whispering, "Look, it's okay. Just calm down. I'm sure we'll run into them soon. The lights just scared them."

Kagome's eyes snapped open and she jerked away from Inuyasha. "But why are the lights on?" She demanded, even though she was aware that Inuyasha was as blind of the truth as she was. "Why did they come on? There are no police or custodians here! So why did they cut on?" Kagome's voice rose a couple octaves. For the first time in what seemed to be months, Kagome was terrified. She was confused, and she knew that being confused in this sort of situation was not good.

"Kagome, shh!" Inuyasha said quickly. "I don't know. All right? But we have to go if we to find the others." He took her hand in his and proceeded down the hall, Kagome following behind him in a daze.

They were taking random turns, no longer paying attention to where they were or where they were going. They only concentrated on finding Sango, Miroku, and Bankotsu.

"Inuyasha…" Kagome said after a while of pure silence. "It was them. They flipped the lights on. They're planning on killing us, anyway."

Inuyasha stopped, whirled around, and stared at Kagome. Her eyes were dazed and transfixed on the tiled floor. She looked frightened. No. More than frightened. Horrified. "You're sure about this?"

Kagome nodded meekly. Her expression told him that things had grown very serious within the last half hour. And things had also grown very, very personal. They were after Kagome, and he wasn't going to let them get to her. "What should we do?" He asked, receiving nothing but a mere shrug in response. He sighed, running a clawed hand through his hair while gently, but firmly, hanging onto Kagome's hand with the other.

"Let's just keep looking, all right?" He finally said. When she didn't respond, he just tugged on her hand and they began wandering aimlessly down the hall.

---

Sango had long came to a halt, attempting to catch the breath she lost sprinting down the many different hallways in order to get to a safe spot; a spot where there was no light and where she wouldn't be seen. She had taken refuge in a corner, well hidden in the darkness. She hadn't dare tried to see if any classrooms were unlocked out of fear of what could have been in them.

It was silent in that dark hallway, and Sango was unnerved. She was so frightened that she began to see things, only to blink and find that they were shadows from the tree branches out of a nearby window. All she could do at this point was sit and wait.

Wait to die? Wait to live? She wasn't so sure. All she wanted was to go home, leap into her bed, and snuggle under the covers. At least then, she'd probably be safe.

---

"Bankotsu…"

Bankotsu whirled in a circle. That was the sixth time he'd heard that same whispering voice say his name. Who was it? Where was it coming from?

"What?" He dared to call out, risking everything in the process. "What do you sick fucks want?"

It grew quiet and he knew that they were only messing with his mind; toying with him. He was doing his best to keep them from receiving the satisfaction they craved, desired. Despite his best efforts to keep his mind in place, his fear got the better of him and he ended up running blindly, aimlessly, lost in the darkened corridors of the school, the voices chasing close at his heels.

"Bankotsu…! Bankotsu, why are you running? Are you afraid?"

Bankotsu closed his eyes tightly, clenched his fists, and willed himself to keep running and not to speak.

"Bankotsu, you _do _know your time is coming, right? Soon, you'll be like everyone else -- Dead."

That small word rang in his ears with such extraordinary finality. He felt his heart racing, his legs growing tired, and sweat forming over his brow at the sound of the maniacal laughing all around him.

And within a matter of minutes, it was gone, silent. He was able to slow down before coming to a complete stop. His breathing was ragged, rapid, as he sucked as much air as possible in. What happened? Where did they go?

It didn't matter at the moment. Bankotsu was only glad he got to stop and rest.

---

Miroku had backed against a wall and was carefully examining every nook and cranny to make sure it was safe before proceeding down the hallway. After every place had been inspected thoroughly, he would reluctantly move on, being cautious as to what he crossed paths with. 'Fear is only in your mind,' he continually reminded himself. He rounded a corner -- after peeking around it and looking both ways -- and began walking toward the library. As soon as he saw all of the shelves of books through the windows, he stopped dead in his tracks. That was it. The killers were inside, and he was all alone outside…unless the others had made it there before he had.

He edged up to the large, glass double doors so he could try and get a look into the large room to see if they were there.

Nothing but darkness.

His shoulders slumped, disappointed, and he let out a small breath. Those cowards. They didn't come to the school after all.

That's when he felt the knife in his back before the presence behind him even registered in his mind. He cried out as it was pulled from his body and he fell to his knees, cringing in pain. Even though he was concerned for his life, he had other things on his mind. Questions that demanded answers. How could he have been so careless? So stupid? Why did he have to be the one to die? What would Kagome say? Inuyasha? Bankotsu? Most of all, Sango? What if they were already dead? If not, would they be able to put these psychotic bastards in jail? What if they couldn't? Would these homicidal maniacs get to run free?

Out of the corner of his eye, Miroku saw the blade of the knife catch some light and he was able to evade the shot with ease. After he did so, he mustered up all his strength and ran down the hallway. He didn't dare stop and he constantly kept his eyes open for the blade. He ignored the pain, the terrible pain that made him think his shoulder blade was shattered. He didn't look back until he was sure the footsteps had stopped. He paused, wincing in pain, and glanced behind him. He had ran to the nearest flight of steps and raced down them and had, obviously, lost his pursuers.

"What the hell?" He asked aloud, his voice echoing throughout the empty stairwell. He felt the blood dripping down his back and saw it pooling at his feet. His reflection in the blood stared back at him with horrified and confused eyes.

"You time is coming to an end…" a voice rang out throughout the tiny space of the stairway. "You will die. We'll make sure of that."

And just like that, the voices dissipated and all was quiet.

---

Kagome had been dazed the whole time Inuyasha had been dragging her along throughout the hallways, not saying anything, and not really seeing anything. This meeting had been a set up. They only agreed to her ridiculous plan so they could seclude them all in one place -- the school -- and kill them off, one by one, and find new players to torment.

How could she have formulated such a ludicrous and dangerous idea and think that it would be simple and smart? How could she put her friends, as well as herself, in mortal danger? Why did she do it in the first place? She hadn't had a plan, which caused even more disaster. Why couldn't she have seen that it had all been a trap? After all, she _had _told them to kill her, so why did she set an appointment to meet them?

"It's all my fault," she murmured.

Inuyasha's sensitive hearing caught those four words and he growled, long and low. "No, it isn't. Just calm down, all right?"

Kagome said nothing. She was too busy paying attention to the floor. There were strange red markings on them…

"Wait." She whispered, causing him to come to a halt. When he looked at her for answers, she motioned toward the floor and he bent down to examine the spots.

"Blood," he said, covering his nose due to his sensitive sense of smell.

"Oh, God." Kagome said. Inuyasha embraced her. He didn't dare tell her that it was Miroku's blood splattered all around the hallway, making a trail. Instead, he consoled her, knowing perfectly well that every moment wasted was another moment someone's life could be taken. Even though this fact chilled him to the bone, despite the heat in the hallway, he didn't show how frightened he was. Nor did he show how outraged he was.

He pulled away from Kagome and looked into her eyes. "We're going to get out of this. I promise."

"I'm so afraid," she whispered.

"Fear is only in our minds," he said. "Don't let it get in the way. We're so close, Kagome. We're so close."

He was right, of course. They were so close to ending the nightmare that had invaded their once peaceful and normal lives. How could she let her fear get in the way and keep her from erasing this part of her life?

"I just hope to others are all right," she said, pushing away the nauseated feeling as she looked at the blood.

"I'm sure they are," he said, even though he had the feeling that someone was seriously hurt…or worse. "Now let's go."

They raced down the hallway and made it to the library, only to find it dark and desolate.

"Those bastards!" Inuyasha cursed. "They're not here!"

Kagome shook her head. "Oh, no. They're here all right. I told you -- they're planning on killing us off. So I guess they're going around the school, and since they split us up, they're killing us. One by one. It's over. We're dead."

Inuyasha opened his mouth to protest against this, but was silenced when hysterical laughter broke out all around them. When it finally died down, a voice -- an all too familiar voice -- said, "Very nice, Higurashi! You finally resigned yourself to death!"

"No, she hasn't done anything!" Inuyasha argued indignantly.

"She just said that she was dead. She also said that you were dead, Inuyasha, along with the rest of your pathetic friends. Now, meet us on the roof."

And just like that, it grew quiet.

---

Sango crept down the hallway vigilantly, keeping her guarded eyes looking around for any suspicious movement. She had been walking for what seemed like forever and she hadn't heard any noise whatsoever. She was almost afraid of what might've happened without her knowledge. She didn't like to think about it.

What if she was the only one left? What if the killers thought that she had skipped out on meeting them and had killed everyone else and then gone to kill their families? She couldn't bear the thought of being alone, especially since it would be Kagome, Inuyasha, and Miroku getting killed. They were like her family…with the exception of Miroku. Miroku was more than family. He was…

Well, the one she liked.

And to think of his death, as well as the death of the two other people she cared about most scared her senseless.

It was just as she was pushing this from her mind that a hand snaked around her face and covered her mouth, pulling back hard and dragging her into a secluded part of the dark hallway. She tried screaming, but found that she couldn't. Her heart in her throat, she struggled against the force that was overwhelming her, but he strength had abandoned her. She was no match.

'This is it,' she thought for a panic-stricken moment. She knew she was going to die and that there wasn't anything she could do about it. She just wished she could say goodbye…

Just as this horrific thought crossed her mind, she heard a gentle voice say, calmly, "Sango. It's me, Bankotsu. Calm down."

Sango immediately ceased in her futile attempt at escape. Her arms went limp and her heart began to slow down to its normal pace in its normal place -- her chest. She whirled around. "Bankotsu? Why aren't you with the others?"

He shrugged. "They panicked, too, and we ran and I guess I wasn't fast enough."

"Oh," was all Sango could say. She didn't feel like an idiot as much as she had before now that she knew that Kagome, their 'leader,' had ran like a scowling dog, too.

"Yeah." Bankotsu examined the hallway. "I passed the library. No one there." He paused and his expression became more troubled. He opened his mouth to inform her of the blood-splattered hallway, but decided against it. It would make her even more frightened and she'd probably go insane.

"They're not here?" She demanded, her voice rising an octave or two.

Once again, he was about to tell her of the blood, but decided not to and only shrugged in response.

That's when they heard the groaning and the heavy breathing. Suddenly very alert, they sucked in a breath and held it, waiting and watching. Who would round the corner? Only God knew, and time would soon tell.

Their fear was short lived when they saw Miroku stagger around the corner, bloody and in obvious pain.

Sango launched herself at him, happy to see that it was him and not some insane killer. She was also happy he was alive. "Miroku! Are you all right?"

Miroku took a moment to compose himself after having been scared by her and said, in a strangled voice, "No."

All the color drained from Sango's face. "What's the matter? I mean…I know you're stabbed and everything, but…"

"I've lost too much blood…" Miroku explained slowly. He appeared weak, frail. "We need to get out of here and call nine-one-one."

Sango looked at Bankotsu. He nodded. "I hate to sound mean," he said, "but the killers should be occupied with Kagome and Inuyasha. Maybe this is our only chance to escape."

Sango slipped an arm around Miroku's waist, supporting him, and began walking down the hallway. Bankotsu led the way and they headed toward the front of the school.

And toward the way to safety.

---

Kagome pushed the heavy, metal door open, afraid and unsure of what she would find. The first thing she noticed was the sky -- so clear and beautiful, with the dark navy blue speckled by shimmering stars. The next thing she noticed was the icy wind that whipped her hair into her face. She put a lock of it behind her ear and stepped out onto the roof. Inuyasha came out behind her and all was silent.

"All right!" Inuyasha called. Kagome noticed that his voice cracked.

"Ah, finally! We were just about to go look for you two." A voice called from behind the brick foundation where the door was built into.

"Oh, really?" Inuyasha asked, not interested in the least.

'So the others are dead?' Kagome asked herself mentally. 'If they only wanted us to come to the roof…I guess they killed everyone else.'

Surprisingly, tears did not come. She didn't feel the need to cry since she had already decided that she was going to join them.

"You two are braver than I thought," Death said. Kagome knew it was Death from her many unpleasant conversations with him. "At first, you give the impression of frightened _dogs_."

"Come out and say that to my face, you sick fuck." Inuyasha growled. Kagome knew that both his hatred and temper were quickly and steadily growing.

"As you wish," Death said.

Impetuously, a hand seized Kagome's throat and pulled her back against a body. She squealed in surprise and froze in fear as a knife was placed at her throat. Sure, she was used to it by now…but for him to do it so directly after being told to was strange.

Inuyasha stared at her captor in shock. He was clearly speechless.

'Who is it?' Kagome demanded silently. She didn't have the strength to ask.

Then her cousin, Jakotsu, appeared behind Inuyasha.

She gasped and jerked her head up to look at her captor. Jakotsu's brother, Suikotsu.

"No…" she said slowly. "You…"

"Long time, no see, Kagome," Suikotsu said.

"But you attacked your own brother! Your own flesh and blood!" She cried, jerking away, barely evading the sharp knife.

Suikotsu shrugged. "And?"

"Why?" She was on the brink of tears. She loved these guys. And to find out that they were the psychotic killers who had been torturing her and her friends and taking victims' names was a hard thing to digest.

"Hmm," Jakotsu said, coming up to her and draping an arm around her shoulders. He bent down and whispered in her ear, "Maybe cause it's fun."

She pulled away from him. "I hate you," she spat.

"No, you don't." Suikotsu said with a grin.

Two things happened at that moment. One: Jakotsu, apparently having enough of keeping a woman alive this long lunged at Kagome to obviously land the finishing blow. Two: Inuyasha dived at Jakotsu as he did this.

Inuyasha and Jakotsu landed in a heap on the roof, Inuyasha screaming out in pain. Kagome saw blood. Jakotsu must have gotten his knife around to where it would stab Inuyasha.

"Damn it," Suikotsu cursed, rushing forward to jerk Inuyasha off of his brother. Kagome, reacting with speed she never knew she had, wrenched the knife he possessed away from him and grabbed him by the shirt collar. She hauled him backwards, away from the struggling Inuyasha and Jakotsu. He swung his hand backward, striking out at her. The shot connected with her face and she fell to the concrete. When he tried to, once again, separate his brother and Inuyasha, Kagome tripped him by hooking her foot behind his knee. He collapsed and she leapt on top of him, the knife poised at his throat.

"Do it," he said.

She stared at him. She couldn't. She didn't want to be like him…she _couldn't _be like him.

He took her hesitation as an advantage and shoved her off onto her back and he jumped on top of her, coiling his fingers around her throat with one large hand while trying to retrieve his knife with the other. She kept the knife out of reach, however, spinning her hand all around so he wouldn't be able to get it. She knew that she wouldn't be able to keep up her current actions due to the lack of oxygen, but she was determined to do so. She only prayed that Inuyasha would see her in a struggle between life and death in time to save her.

"What's the matter, Higurashi?" Suikotsu sneered in her face arrogantly. "What happened to fighting back? You never could when you were a spoiled brat, and you can't now. That's why I chose you; because you're so predictable and easy to intimidate."

Kagome, unable to speak, much less breathe, only stared at him. Everything around her began to grow fuzzy and was spinning a bit. She felt death all around her. It was eminent. It was coming, and she knew it. The fear of this knowledge encircled her.

"You're too afraid to fight back!" Suikotsu shouted.

'Fear is only in our minds,' Kagome heard Inuyasha saying in her mind. 'Don't let it get in the way. We're so close, Kagome. We're so close.'

The faces of all of the victims who she had chosen flashed before her eyes and she knew what she had to do. She had to avenge their deaths and redeem herself by either killing these maniacs or sending them to prison. She voted for the first one.

With a loud cry, she pushed forward with all her might. Suikotsu, surprised by this action, fell backwards.

"You bastards!" She yelled. "I despise you."

She lunged forward and caught Suikotsu, the knife jabbing into his side. He screamed in pain, but Kagome didn't stop. She pulled the knife out and would have plunged it into his heart, but Jakotsu prevented her from doing so. He tackled her, causing the knife to fly from her hands and across the roof. She landed on the concrete so hard, the force sent the air out of her. She tried to gasp in lungful after lungful, but Jakotsu began strangling her, just as Suikotsu had done, and she could not get any air.

Inuyasha punched Jakotsu in the face, sending him reeling onto the roof and off of Kagome. He helped her up and they both froze when they heard the cocking of a pistol.

"All right," Suikotsu growled. He was breathing heavily due to the wound to his side, but that, however, didn't seem to be keeping him from pointing a gun at Inuyasha and Kagome. "Enough fighting. You might as well give it up. You're dead, anyways."

Kagome and Inuyasha were both frozen with fear, their minds racing, trying to decided on what action to take. They both settled on a forward attack. Kagome went for Suikotsu's lower region while Inuyasha knocked the gun from his hands. He picked it up from the roof and aimed it at Suikotsu while Kagome had the knife and was glaring at Jakotsu.

They probably would've attacked if they hadn't heard, "All right! All weapons down!"

All four of them looked toward the doorway to the roof and saw a dozen policemen, weapons drawn, and aimed. Inuyasha and Kagome dropped their weapons.

"Hands up!" A policeman shouted.

Four sets of hand went into the air.

Kagome looked toward the doorway and saw Sango and Bankotsu peeking out. So they were alive, after all.

And it appeared as if the nightmare was finally over.

--2 weeks later--

_Dear journal,_

_Things are great. Despite the fact that I spent nearly a week talking to the police and the television news reporters, my mom wasn't all that angry. She was just happy I was all right. Miroku should be getting out of the hospital really soon. His injury wasn't serious and he's doing very good. Sesshomaru awoke from his coma and he's back at home with Inuyasha. Sango forgave me for all the rude comments I made and how harsh I was to her. _

_Suikotsu and Jakotsu were put in jail for life. Thank God that nightmare is over! Poor Bankotsu. He's taking it pretty rough. I mean, they _were _his brothers and everything. I mean, I was shocked, too. But I'm sure he'll come around._

_School will be back in session next week. They wanted to give all the students -- especially the five of us -- some breathing room. I'm glad they did. I need it. _

_All in all, things are great. I'm so happy. Nothing could go wrong now._

_Signed, Kagome_

Kagome sighed as she finished up her journal entry and closed the tiny journal. She took a sip of Pepsi and stared at the television. She had left it on the same station all day, not really paying attention to whatever was on. It was the news. Wow.

Her mom was at work, Inuyasha was at home, Sango was visiting Miroku in the hospital, so she was all alone. It was okay, though. She needed some time alone. She had spent two weeks being hounded by news crews and journalists and police. So a small break was fine by her.

She stood up to stretch and paused when a breaking news headline burst across the television screen.

"--This just in. Two deadly killers have escaped from prison and are now are the loose--"

Two pictures appeared on the screen. Kagome nearly died.

"--If you see either of these boys, call nine-one-one immediately!"

Her heart rate increased. 'They wouldn't come here, though. They wouldn't be that stupid. Right?'

The doorbell rang.

'It's Inuyasha. I know it is. He said he would come by and see me sometime today.'

She approached the door. "Who is it?"

"Kagome! Come and open the door! Let your two favorite cousins in!"

----

Note-Oh my! It's over! No! Guess what that means! A Sequel! Woo! Please review and tell me what you thought. I appreciate it. Thanks!


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